LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Princeton Area Community Foundation, the community foundation serving central New Jersey, today announced its Fall 2012 competitive grant awards totaling $468,464 in funding to local nonprofit organizations that serve those in need and build community throughout greater Mercer County.
To date, Greater Mercer Grants has invested $8 million in the most innovative and effective work being done in our region. Each year, more than 120 local nonprofits submit detailed proposals. The Community Foundation’s grants committee reviews them in a rigorous, competitive process.
The Community Foundation collaborates with NRG Energy and the Harbourton Foundation, along with many charitable funds established by individuals and families to support the competitive grants program. * A full list of these funds is appended to this press release.
Grants are awarded in Community Building, which supports efforts that build social capital – the shared will and networks needed to tackle social problems – as well as in the form of Unrestricted Support and specific Program Support to organizations that meet the needs of low income individuals and families.
Community Building:
Passage Theater Company – $42,000 to support the development of community partnerships, expanded educational programming, new and stronger relationships with Trenton’s Latino community, and opportunities for a diverse audience to build bridges of communication and respect.
People & Stories / Gente y Cuentos – $20,000 to conduct literature reading and discussion programs that will bridge socioeconomic, racial, and cultural differences by linking Trenton residents with people from surrounding towns and neighborhoods.
Artworks – $30,000 to foster community, culture, and creativity through programming such as Art All Night and the Trenton Mural Arts Project, which provide creative outlets for city residents while attracting visitors for diverse and positive arts experiences.
Volunteer Connect – $20,000 to promote volunteerism and effective use of volunteers by local nonprofits, helping organizations to identify and define projects that draw on professional skills and to recruit skilled volunteers and board members from area corporations.
Millhill Family & Child Development Center – $17,250 for the Trenton Area Stakeholders initiative, an ongoing forum for working collaborations and dialogue to improve the lives of children and families.
Unrestricted Support:
Crisis Ministry of Princeton and Trenton – $25,000
Dress for Success Mercer County – $15,000
HomeFront – $25,000
Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Greater Mercer County – $20,000
Trenton Area Soup Kitchen – $25,000
Trenton Community Music School – $10,000
Womanspace – $25,000
Program Support:
CASA of Mercer County – $25,000
Family Guidance Center/Family & Children’s Services – $20,000
HiTOPS – $25,000
LifeTies – $25,000
New Jersey Agricultural Society – $15,000
UIH Family Partners – $25,000
UrbanPromise Trenton, LLC – $25,000
Rescue Mission of Trenton – $15,000
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COMMUNITY GRANTMAKING FUNDS AT THE PRINCETON AREA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
Tristan Beplat Fund, Blair Family Fund, Charles L. and Ann Lee Brown Fund, James E. & Diane W. Burke Fund, Judith and William Burks Fund, Jane M. Campbell Fund, Esther Y. Eure Fund, Archer & Thomas Harvey Fund, Robert Wood Johnson Jr. Fund, Kuser Arts Fund, LVC Fund, Princeton Youth Fund, Leroy E. “Brick” Purvis Charitable Fund, Barbara B. Smoyer Memorial Fund, Marjorie R. Smoyer Fund, Stanley C. Smoyer Fund, Speir Fund, Frank E. Taplin Jr. Fund, Weymar Fund, Whitehead Fund, Willy N. Fund, and several advised funds.
For information on establishing a community grantmaking fund or participating as a supporter of Greater Mercer Grants in future funding cycles, please visit www.pacf.org/give.
