Yates Emergency Relief Fund donates over $140K for Covid recovery – Penn Yan Chronicle-Express
Yates Community Endowment distributes 29 grants totaling $140,692 for general support and COVID-19 recovery and rebuilding efforts.
YATES COUNTY – In the past year, the Yates Community Endowment (YCE) has awarded 29 grants totaling $140,692 to support nonprofits that serve Yates County residents, with $95,492 distributed from its Yates Emergency Relief Fund to address local needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve been reviewing proposals and making grants almost nonstop since last summer to ensure that the critical services our neighbors need were able to continue,” says Ann McMullen, co-chair of YCE, which is marking the 10th year since it was established. “We are grateful for all of the contributions from the community that helped to make this support possible.”
The Emergency Relief Fund, established in May 2020, initially addressed urgent and basic needs during the first year of the pandemic. This year, the fund focused on supporting community needs related to recovery and rebuilding, such as job training, child care, and mental health services, and occasional operational support for nonprofits on the front lines during this crisis.
Yates Emergency Relief Fund grants
Grants from the Yates Emergency Relief Fund were awarded to these nonprofit organizations (number in parentheses indicates more than one grant):
• Arts Center of Yates County: To kickstart the return of the Keuka Arts Festival. $5,000
• Bishop Sheen Ecumenical Housing Foundation Inc.: To rehab homes of six low-income households to eliminate environmental, health, and safety hazards. $5,000
• Cornell Cooperative Extension of Yates County: Support for COVID-19 agriculture outreach. $8,000 (2)
• Dundee Central School: Personal protective equipment (PPE) for students. $7,000
• Dundee Children’s Center: Operational support for 2021. $5,000
• EZ Kids Creativity Shell: To expand the Creativity Cooks meal-delivery program to include children from low-income households in Yates County. $2,500
• Finger Lakes Cultural and Natural History Museum: Operational support. $5,000
• Legal Assistance of Western New York: Support for the Yates County Housing and Public Benefits Hotline and Advocacy Project. $3,000
• Mozaic (formerly Arc of Yates/Seneca/Cayuga): For Keuka Lake School. $5,000
• Our Town Rocks: Operational and program support. $5,000
• Penn Yan Central School District Family Support Services: For extended school day and child care program. $5,000
• Penn Yan Theatre Company: Operational support. $5,000
• Pro Action of Steuben and Yates Inc.: Emergency respite care assistance and support for the Personal Emergency Response System for residents age 60 and older. $8,000 (2)
• Rochester Folk Art Guild: COVID emergency relief and operational support. $10,000 (2)
• Yates County History Center: For technology support and the digitization of microfilm of historic Yates County newspapers. $5,000
• YMCA of Greater Rochester: Operational support and emergency funding for rapid COVID-19 testing at Camp Cory. $11,992 (2)
Yates Community Endowment Grants
The YCE also is marking its 10th year. During that decade, YCE and several affiliate funds have distributed more than $600,000 in grants specifically to benefit Yates County and its residents. That includes $177,000 raised and distributed from YCE’s Disaster Relief Fund in the months following the devastating flooding in 2014 that destroyed businesses, homes, and roads.
YCE also awarded grants this year during its regular 2021 grant round. Nine nonprofits received a total of $45,200 from YCE, along with contributions from several of its affiliate funds housed at Rochester Area Community Foundation. Those grantees are:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Rochester: Supports the Yates County Youth Mentoring Program where youth are matched with screened and trained mentors in one to one relationships in Yates County schools and throughout the community. The relationship builds confidence in youth so they will do better in school, avoid negative behaviors, and reach their highest potential. $5,700 (Fully funded by the Robert F. Flickinger Memorial Fund)
Family Counseling Service of the Finger Lakes: For the LGBTQ Youth Advocacy Program, which serves as the main source for education, resources, and support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning community through trainings, events, support groups, advocacy services, and contributions to existing programs and services that promote inclusivity. $3,000
Hope Center Keuka Food Pantry: Supports ongoing operations at this food pantry in Penn Yan that helps to address food insecurity throughout Yates County. $7,500 (Fully funded by The McMullen Family Fund)
Humane Society of Yates County: For the care and welfare of companion animals. $1,500
Mercy Flight Central: Supports the purchase of the Zoll X Series monitor to allow clinicians to monitor all critical care values that a hospital emergency department or intensive care unit can monitor. $5,000
Penn Yan Theatre Company: For repairs to the Historic Sampson Theatre and working toward having it serve as a permanent home for live, youth-centered performances. $7,500
Safe Harbors of the Finger Lakes: Supports the age-appropriate education of children in kindergarten through eighth grade about child abuse prevention. $5,000 (Includes $4,000 from The Spring Hill Fund)
Yates Cultural & Recreational Resources Inc.: To continue operations at the Yates Community Center, including the fitness center, ELEVATE Youth and Core Adult programming, walking trail, and fields. $5,000 (Includes $1,600 from the Willie Taaffe Memorial Fund)
YMCA of Greater Rochester Camp Cory Scholarships: Supports scholarships for Yates County youth to participate in the camp’s 2021 Day Camp. $5,000