The Princeton Area Community Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls has awarded $186,000 in grants to 13 local nonprofits to fund programs that serve economically vulnerable women and children.
“The Fund for Women and Girls is comprised of individual members who engage in collective philanthropy and grantmaking,” said Cathy Schaeder Batterman, Fund Co-Chair. “Thanks to the generosity and commitment of our Fund members, we have awarded more than $400,000 in grants to over three dozen nonprofits in the last three years.”
Nonprofit representatives, Fund members, and their guests gathered at the Fund’s Annual Grantmaking dinner. Representatives from six finalist organizations gave short presentations about their programs, and Fund members voted to determine how to distribute the grants.
“Because we combine our financial contributions, we are able to award large, single and multi-year grants to organizations that improve the lives of the most vulnerable women and children in our community,” said Karen Collias, Fund Co-Chair.
Arm in Arm in Trenton received a 3-year grant totaling $75,000:
- The grant will fund their Mobility Mentoring program, which will support 10 single women and their families to improve housing stability, individual and family well-being, education and job advancement, and financial literacy to help move these families out of poverty permanently.
Three nonprofits received 1-year grants of $25,000:
- Better Beginnings Child Development Center in Hightstown. The grant will fund year-round high-quality, affordable preschool and childcare, as well as support services for parents, helping them find resources so they can remain employed or attend full-time training/educational programs.
- CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Mercer and Burlington Counties, based in Ewing. The grant provides training for CASA volunteers, who are appointed by the Family Court, to advocate for young children who have been removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. Some 47 percent of new referrals to the agency are for children ages 0-5; special training of volunteers is necessary to properly assess the needs of these often non-verbal children.
- The Children’s Home Society of New Jersey (CHS) in Trenton. The grant will fund CHS’ Community Doula Program, which trains bilingual doulas who will support dozens of pregnant and post-partum low-income Latina women and their babies. New Jersey has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation; there is significant research that shows doulas improve both maternal and child health outcomes.
Two other nonprofits received grants of $2,500 each:
- Dress for Success Central New Jersey – 7 Counties in Lawrenceville for its Women’s Empowerment Programs
- Trinity Counseling Services in Princeton, for its Childhood Intervention Initiative (CII), which serves families in Princeton, Cranbury, West Windsor, and Plainsboro
The following six nonprofits received grants of $1,000 each for their programs in support of low income women and children: Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) in Trenton; Princeton Nursery School in Princeton; embrella in Princeton; HomeFront, in Lawrenceville; RISE, in Hightstown; YWCA of Princeton
The Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund (LALDEF) received the second $25,000 installment of a Fund for Women and Girls 3-year grant for its Futuro mentoring program for high achieving, low income high school students in Trenton and Princeton.
Founded in 1998, the Fund for Women and Girls of the Princeton Area Community Foundation is a diverse group of philanthropists who give together to organizations that improve the lives of economically vulnerable women and children in greater Mercer County. Last year alone, the Fund made grants of nearly $200,000 to more than a dozen nonprofits serving women and children in Trenton, Hightstown, and Princeton.
The Princeton Area Community Foundation promotes philanthropy and builds community across Mercer County and central New Jersey. It helps people and companies make effective charitable gifts and awards grants to nonprofits. Since its founding in 1991, the Community Foundation has grown into an organization with more than $180 million in assets and made grants of more than $149 million, including $21 million in 2018.
