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2009 Competitive Grants

2009 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors Recipient & Purpose Amount Focus Area Ray of Light Farm for funding for the feeding and medical bills of rescued foals, which are the unfortunate by-products of Premarin production by a major pharmaceutical company. The slaughter bound babies are rescued and tamed with the intent of being adopted within 3 - 4 months. $2,000 Animal Welfare Community Music School for a development program consultant, fundraising training, donor management software and professionally designed marketing materials. $3,200 Arts Ivoryton Playhouse Foundation to hire technical help to implement an electronic distribution system and marketing expertise to do a marketing analysis, review previous marketing efforts and make recommendations on how best position the Playhouse as it approaches its centennial year, 2011. $5,000 Arts NEAR, Inc./Buttonwood Tree to update its technology capabilities. $1,050 Arts Oddfellows Playhouse to help fund the Art Explorers program for 35 under served middle school youth who are at risk of substance abuse, juvenile delinquency and violence by providing professional one-on-one visual, literary or performing arts instruction during the school year for 2 hours once a week. $3,500 Arts Essex Library Association for the expansion of its English as a Second Language materials to better serve Spanish and Chinese speaking residents. $2,500 Education Literacy Volunteers Valley Shore for technology upgrades, including new desktop computers and monitors, software updates and equipment installation. $3,300 Education Middlesex Hospital, Family Advocacy Program to support "Opportunity Knocks" a program to empower parents and caregivers of children through in-home parent education and skill development, and will help achieve the community's goal that no child is expelled from his or her preschool program. $3,025 Education Middletown School Readiness Council to support a collaborative program with the Connecticut Storytelling Center to bring storytelling performances to 350 low-income preschoolers in eight Middletown preschools. In addition, children will receive one free book per month. $3,000 Education Mount Saint John to support a portion of the cost of a full day retreat to galvanize the Board of Directors and professional staff to build organizational capacity. $825 Education Vista Vocational & Life Skills Center for a community education and outreach initiative bringing Vista members into local middle and high schools, as well as other community venues, to speak about living and working successfully with disabilities. $2,000 Education Connecticut Forest & Park Association to fund a part time staff person to manage member recruitment, assist in developing membership materials and volunteer outreach. $4,000   Environment Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (CT SAR) to purchase a history museum management software package to launch a special section on its website dedicated to the East Haddam Nathan Hale Schoolhouse; to open an online giving account with Network for Good; and to hire a museum consultant to manage a social media marketing campaign designed to attract local audiences to join as museum patrons. $3,500 Heritage Enhancement Deep River Public Library to purchase a microfilm reader for improved access to "The New Era", a local newspaper dating back to the 1870's. The Deep River Historical Society has offered to assist in this project. $5,000 Heritage Enhancement Godfrey Memorial Library for an Administrative Librarian who would coordinate entering information and photos for the library’s Saving the Past for the Future: Preserving Our 2,500 Cemeteries Project. The project includes updating computer equipment with additional server capacity. $5,600 Heritage Enhancement Portland Historical Society to construct audio station podiums at the Ruth Callander House Museum, as a community service Eagle Scout project of Boy Scout Troop 2. $1,625 Heritage Enhancement American Red Cross - Middlesex Central CT Chapter to provide online information for disaster services, health and safety and community programs, volunteering opportunities and online donations. $4,500 Human Services Connecticut Foundation for Dental Outreach to provide free dental care to the underserved and uninsured of Middlesex County. $5,000 Human Services Estuary Council of Senior Clubs to help fund new and replacement commercial grade food service equipment. The kitchen is utilized to prepare meals to congregate meal sites, homebound meals and outreach related events. $5,000 Human Services FISH for C.D.& E. to provide free transportation to medical, dental and physical rehabilitation appointments for patients in need who are residents of the Lower County. $2,200 Human Services Gilead Community Services to provide support for clients who have long-term, chronic mental illness and are below the poverty level, as they wait for subsidies to maintain their permanent housing. $5,000 Human Services I Have A Friend Youth Center to support the after school program that addresses the needs of low income and at-risk children in Middletown ages 6 - 12. Funding will enable the organization to purchase arts and crafts supplies, field trip expenses, food expenses and insurance. $2,500 Human Services Middletown Parks and Recreation to provide support groups, summer programming, respite and emergency funds to grandparents raising their grandchildren. $3,000 Human Services New Horizons Domestic Violence Services to provide funding to residents who have made a complete commitment to starting a new, safe, independent life and do not qualify for any of the existing state or federal rental subsidies. $3,200 Human Services North End Action Team to expand organizing projects and initiatives within the low income North End neighborhood including expansion of the successful Community Conversations, youth programs, educational advocacy and homeownership and financial management programs. $5,200 Human Services Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries for the purchase of wholesale food to augment food distributed to pantry participants. $6,500 Human Services St. Luke's Eldercare Solutions of Central CT to pay for direct volunteer mileage reimbursement and to help defray the costs of taxis to out-of-area medical appointments when no volunteers are available. $5,000 Human Services St. Vincent DePaul Place to offer financial assistance to prevent eviction and loss of utilities. $5,000 Human Services Gilead Community Services to provide adolescent girls with mental illness with an opportunity to participate in various arts and cultural activities to foster personal growth and build self-esteem. $2,000 Women & Girls Middletown Public Schools to support the "Right Steps" continuum, which includes: Nurturing Families, People Empowering People (PEP), Parent Leadership Training Institute (PTLI), and Parents Supporting Educational Excellence (PSEE). $500 Women & Girls Ray of Light Farm to support a program which provides young girls with the opportunity to teach adults interested in learning horseback riding and animal care. $900 Women & Girls Rushford Center to support "Girl Talk," a summer program for at-risk middle school girls in Middletown that focuses on the media, physical activity, nutrition and positive self-image. $2,000 Women & Girls Westbrook Youth and Family Services to provide support for Divorced or Separated Women, "Girls Self Esteem Group" and "Women's Support Group". $3,000 Women & Girls Woodrow Wilson Middle School to support a one night program for 5th - 8th grade girls and their mothers at Woodrow Wilson Middle School. The program gives mothers and daughters the opportunity to attend classes and spend quality time together. $1,850 Women & Girls 2009 Competitive Grants Approved $111,475

2008 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors
2007 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors
2006 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors
2005 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors
2004 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors
2003 Competitive Grants Approved by the Board of Directors

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