When you make a contribution to WFCR and WNNZ between January 10 and March 5, a group of donors from the Community Foundation will donate 20 meals to the Food Bank. Our donors will direct the grants to the Food Bank from their Donor Advised Funds, administered by the Foundation.

More than 108,000 of our neighbors seek food assistance at Food Bank member agencies each year. Combine stagnant wages, unemployment, rising food prices, and exponential increases in heating costs, and the result is that many households just can't make ends meet. Families often sacrifice by cutting back on meals or buying cheaper foods at the grocery store.

These families often have to look to a local food pantry or survival center for temporary assistance. It is more critical than ever that these pantries are well stocked with food to meet our neighbors' needs.

Call 1-800-639-8850, or send a check today. Your support of WFCR and WNNZ will help families in need from Pittsfield to Holyoke , Turners Falls to Easthampton .

Every single contribution received by WFCR during this time will count towards this special effort. Our goal is to make this drive as successful as last year's Feed Your Radio, Feed a Family campaign when Community Foundation donors gave over 90,000 meals to the Food Bank. With your help, we'll do it one meal at a time.

To make your contribution, visit WFCR’s secure pledge page today!

Girls from Girls Incorporated of Holyoke

The scholarship program at the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts provides support to help ease the financial burden of attending college.  In 2010, the Community Foundation received 162 applications from the Holyoke area with 65 applicants receiving a total of $232,250 in funding to attend college.

Three girls from the program at Girls Inc., Evelyn Acevedo, Julisa Deleon and Analiz Garcia, all applied for scholarships from the Community Foundation and received funding.  Evelyn and Analiz are attending colleges in Western Mass at Elms College and Bay Path College, respectively; and Julisa is attending Newbury College in Brookline, MA.

“With the tremendous support of the Community Foundation scholarship program, college is becoming a reality for at-risk girls. Despite the challenges in their lives, the girls we work with have amazing aspirations and college is a critical step toward achieving them”, stated Suzanne Parker, Executive Director of Girls Inc. 

The scholarship and interest-free student loan funds support students seeking access to the opportunities offered by higher education and play a substantial role in creating an educated and employable community. 

The scholarships program affords the girls the opportunity to focus on achieving their potential while easing the financial burden.  “The Community Foundation scholarship helped me take the first step towards my future.  How to start my future financially was my fear,” explained Analiz.

For Julisa, the financial concern was the same and now with college in her path she can see a brighter future.  “I was so worried for my financial state in college.  Receiving the scholarships lifted a huge stone off my chest.  Now there is nothing to stop me from succeeding. “

The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts is now accepting applications to award more than $2 million in scholarships and interest-free loans available to local students planning to pursue education at the undergraduate and graduate levels for the 2011-2012 academic year. Over 100 funds will provide awards considering academic merit and financial need. Scholarships range from $500 to $8,000, and students may apply for interest-free loans of up to $3,000.  Many of the funds support students with special interests in areas including academics, athletics, and music, to name a few.  Also, some scholarships support specific geographic areas, ethnicities and religious affiliations.

Access to these scholarships and loans can be achieved through completing one online application available at www.communityfoundation.org. Applications and all supporting materials must be postmarked by March 31, 2011. 

The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts recently announced $608,650 in competitive grant awards to local organizations that applied in the third grant cycle of 2010.  Seventy Pioneer Valley projects will receive this funding with awards ranging from $750 to $30,000.   The Community Foundation awards competitive grants twice each year, allocating funds to nonprofit organizations for projects addressing community needs including arts and culture, education, environment, health, housing, and human services for Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties. 

Funding for the competitive grant program comes from distributions from over 30 funds. These funds were established by diverse individuals and groups interested in supporting local nonprofits by relying on the Community Foundation’s volunteers and staff to determine the most effective use by nonprofit agencies in our community.  Thirteen volunteer members of the Foundation’s Distribution Committee and 20 project reviewers carefully evaluated all 89 applications for funding requests totaling over $1.5 million dollars.

This was the recommended distribution by county:

The Distribution Committee members and Project Reviewers will be meeting soon with organizations that submitted grant applications on January 6, 2011. The next deadline for submission of grant applications is August 4, 2011. View application and instructions.

Scholarship Deadline Ahead - March 31, 2011

Scholarship applications and required material will be accepted each year from early January through March 31.  All students are encouraged to apply early.  The information you disclose in the application will determine your eligibility for the next academic year only.  Students need to reapply each year.

To be eligible for consideration, an application and all supporting documentation must be submitted by March 31, 2011.
For details of what's to be included with the application please click here.