A notice to all Members of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation.
You are hereby notified that the Annual Meeting of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation is scheduled for June 2, 2022, at 6:00 PM at the UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center, 50 Warren Street, Lowell MA.
The Governance and Personnel Committee nominates the following individual to fill one vacancy on the Board of Directors:
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Lowell, MA – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) announced it had granted an additional $12,000 to three nonprofits in Greater Lowell that are working to address the immediate needs of new refugees from Afghanistan resettling in the community.
These grants were disbursed from the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund, which was created last fall, to assist nonprofits who support refugees arriving from Afghanistan to Greater Lowell and ensures that those in need are welcomed and connected with housing, employment, transportation, food, acculturation, and other related support. No administrative fee was charged by GLCF, so that all donations to the fund supported local nonprofits who were optimally positioned to provide immediate assistance and support.
“Our generous donors who gave to the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund provided area nonprofits with the critical support needed to welcome and resettle our new Afghan neighbors,” said Jay Linnehan, GLCF’s President and CEO. “This grant funding complemented the work of local nonprofits and expanded our community’s capacity to meet the needs of Afghans who fled their homeland to come to the U.S. seeking safety.”
Recipients of recent grants from the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund include:
Among the organizations funded was Aaron’s Presents, a nonprofit that provides hands-on, individualized mentoring, materials/services, and logistical help to any child in 8th grade or below who want to carry out an idea that benefits at least one other person, animal, and/or the environment. Since the winter, Aaron’s Presents have been providing visits and socialization opportunities for Afghan children. “These visits, initiated by Lowell youth who are part of Aaron’s Presents, have given our mentors and kids more than we have given to the Afghan families. We have been moved by their gracious and unhesitating welcome of these strangers into their homes, their generosity of spirit, and the ability of play, kindness, respect, and genuine goodwill to transcend language and cultural barriers,” Leah Okimoto, Executive Director, Aaron’s Presents. “This funding by GLCF will make more of these personal interactions having fun with other kids possible.”
Overall, state officials say 1,887 Afghans have relocated to Massachusetts. International Institute of New England (IINE), who received a previous round of grant funding, reports that they have settled 228 Afghans in Greater Lowell. To date, the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund has distributed $42,300 in grants.
Donations to the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fundcan be made online at www.glcfoundation.org or by mail to the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund c/o GLCF, 100 Merrimack Street, Suite 202, Lowell, MA 01852.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $58 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation announced the creation of the Lowell TeleMedia Center (LTC) Agency Fund. This new agency fund provides annual and capital support to LTC to further its mission to strengthen the City of Lowell as a community media and education center.
“We are grateful to collaborate with GLCF,” said Jessica Donaldson, LTC Board President. “This fund allows us to continue and foster community engagement and collaboration around video and telemedia production today while having the flexibility to invest in key initiatives in the future.”
“We are excited for our partnership with LTC and the creation of their new agency fund,” said GLCF President and CEO Jay Linnehan. “GLCF’s agency funds allow organizations to create a fund that generates investment income, year after year.”
A nonprofit agency fund is a simple and effective way to take advantage of the foundation’s professional investment management services while building a funding source and promoting sustainability for nonprofits in Greater Lowell. More than 40 Greater Lowell nonprofit organizations have established agency funds at the Community Foundation. For more information on the Greater Lowell Community Foundation please visit www.glcfoundation.org.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) awarded $525,860 in COVID-19 related grants to 13 nonprofits in Greater Lowell through funding from the Baker-Polito Administration’s Community Foundations Grant Program for COVID-19 Relief. The program is administered by the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development and the Department of Housing and Community Development.
GLCF distributed funds to nonprofit organizations serving our community to alleviate hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic and address: emergency food, housing support, educational program support, essential supplies/services, and youth program support via the GLCF 2022 COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund.
“Greater Lowell nonprofits have demonstrated incredible resiliency throughout the pandemic,” said GLCF president & CEO Jay Linnehan. “Through the partnership with the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development and the Department of Housing and Community Development, GLCF continued supporting nonprofit programs vital to our community through this latest round of funding.”
The 13 nonprofits receiving grants in the latest round of the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund are:
Alternative House in Lowell received funding from the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund. “With this funding, Alternative House will be able to support survivors of domestic violence through the many additional obstacles they may be facing at this point in their lives,” said Maria Crooker-Capone, Executive Director, Alternative House. “Access to transportation, food, backup childcare, cleaning supplies, and housing has become more difficult since the pandemic and these funds will allow us to provide increased access to all those things for our program participants.”
“The funding helps us immediately respond to the urgent needs of our immigrant and refugee clients so they can avoid homelessness and hunger, as we support them on their path towards self-sufficiency,” shared IINE’s Lowell Managing Director, Caroline Hanson Rowe. International Institute of New England (IINE) received a grant to address housing and food insecurity for refugee and immigrant households in Lowell.
The Center for Hope and Healing’s Driving Hope mobile outreach service was also supported. “These grant funds allow us to support survivors of sexual violence in our Greater Lowell community, who are still disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic even after these two years,” said Isa Woldeguiorguis, executive director at The Center for Hope and Healing. “With the support from GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund, last year Driving Hope conducted 393 visits, served more than 150 families, and distributed emergency relief to survivors and their families in the Greater Lowell communities. Driving Hope program will continue to increase safety, reduce isolation, and increase access to resources to children and youth, male survivors, LGBQ/T folks, refugees and immigrants, people with disabilities, people of color, and people with limited English proficiency.”
Since 2020, through grants from the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund, the foundation has supported more than 135 local nonprofit organizations with grants totaling over $5.1 million.
Donations to the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund can be made online at www.glcfoundation.org or by mail to the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund c/o GLCF, 100 Merrimack Street, Suite 202, Lowell, MA 01852.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – On Thursday, June 2, 2022, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) will host its 25th Annual Meeting from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. at the UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center. The event will feature a conversation with presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin.
Doris Kearns Goodwin is a world-renowned presidential historian, public speaker, and Pulitzer Prize-winning, New York Times #1 best-selling author. Her seventh book, Leadership in Turbulent Times, was published in September 2018 to critical acclaim and became an instant New York Times bestseller. A culmination of Goodwin’s five-decade career of studying the American presidents focusing on Presidents Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and Lyndon Baines Johnson, the book provides an accessible and essential road map for aspiring and established leaders in every field and all of us in our everyday lives.
“As we celebrate GLCF’s 25th anniversary, we are honored to welcome world-renowned historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. Her work brings to life some of our most successful presidents and provides insight for today’s leaders,” said Jay Linnehan. “As we reflect on a quarter-century of improving the lives of the Greater Lowell community through philanthropy, we are thankful for our supporters, partners, and grantees who have helped to make our work possible.”
Event tickets are $25, and registration is required. 100% of the ticket price will be directed to 25th GLCF Grants addressing essential needs in the Greater Lowell community. Limited in-person tickets are available. Register by May 26.
To learn more about this event or to register, visit: https://www.glcfoundation.org/event/2022-annual-meeting-celebrating-25-years/
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) yesterday announced it had granted $30,300 to five nonprofits in Greater Lowell that are working to address the immediate needs of new refugees from Afghanistan resettling in the community.
These grants were disbursed from the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund, which was created last fall. The fund assists nonprofits who support refugees arriving from Afghanistan to Greater Lowell and ensures that those in need are welcomed and connected with housing, employment, transportation, food, acculturation, and other related support.
“As Afghan refugees and evacuees continue to arrive in our community, the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund is supporting area nonprofits providing the critical support needed to welcome and resettle this population,” said Jay Linnehan, GLCF’s President and CEO. “This work is ongoing, and we are so grateful to our generous donors who support these important resettlement efforts.”
Recipients of grants from the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund include:
Donations to the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fundcan be made online at www.glcfoundation.org or by mail to the GLCF Afghan Resettlement Fund c/o GLCF, 100 Merrimack Street, Suite 202, Lowell, MA 01852.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $58 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – The Women Working Wonders (WWW) Fund, a permanently endowed fund of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation, has announced the recipients of $10,000 in mini-grants. These grants will support local nonprofit programs that empower women and girls to effect positive change in the community.
“As we have worked hard to continue to grow our endowment, we have the privilege to increase grant support to our community beyond our annual grant cycle each summer,” said Carolyn Gregoire, Women Working Wonders Fund board president. “COVID-19 has increased the needs of the community, and WWWF is responding by providing $10,000 in mini-grants to help area nonprofits during this challenging time.”
Recipients of 2022 WWW mini-grants include:
“We are thrilled to receive a 2022 Women Working Wonders Fund Mini-grant. This timely grant will be used to support our Accelerating Women Leadership program, which will be starting in March,” said Susu Wong, co-founder of Women Accelerators. “This program is designed to equip female leaders with the specific strategies, mindsets, and behaviors they will need to confidently lead themselves and others as they advance within their organizations.”
WWWF provides annual grants in three key areas: assist women in transition, provide leadership development as well as contribute to the beautification of the environment. Established in 2004, the fund has granted nearly $300,000 to nonprofits supporting women and girls in the Greater Lowell area.
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About Greater Lowell Community Foundation — Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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Lowell, MA – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation will open its 2022 Nashoba Valley Healthcare Fund and Discretionary Grant Cycles on February 2 and is seeking requests for proposals from nonprofit organizations. The Foundation will award $160,000 through the Discretionary Grant Cycle. Funding areas for 2022 include children’s services, elder services, and racial equity/inclusion.
Nonprofit organizations serving the communities of Acton, Ashby, Ayer, Bedford, Billerica, Burlington, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Dunstable, Groton, Littleton, Lowell, Pepperell, Shirley, Tewksbury, Townsend, Tyngsboro, Westford, and Wilmington are invited to apply.
Additionally, GLCF will open its 2022 Nashoba Valley Healthcare Fund Cycle on Feb. 2. The foundation seeks requests for proposals from nonprofit organizations supporting the advancement of community health of residents in the following GLCF communities: Ashby, Ayer, Dunstable, Groton, Littleton, Pepperell, Shirley, Townsend, and Westford. The Foundation will award $80,000 through this grant program.
Nashoba Valley Healthcare Fund Cycle grant awards will range from $5,000 up to $20,000; however, larger scale collaborative projects that are more than $20,000 will be considered if the funding request is justified by the impact of the project. Of particular interest are proposals that address systemic issues like (but not limited to) addiction/substance abuse, domestic violence, food insecurity, mental health, suicide screening and prevention, obesity, racial equity and inclusion and other specific issues as indicated by community needs.
Grant applications for both grant opportunities must be submitted by noon on March 4, 2022. Grant recipients will be announced in May. More information is available on the foundation’s website: www.glcfoundation.org.
For more information about the grant process, contact Sharon, GLCF Grants Coordinator with any questions at sharon@glcfoundation.org.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation — Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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LOWELL — For 25 years, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) has responded to the area’s most urgent needs. Now, the foundation is celebrating a quarter-century of service. From awarding grants and scholarships to working to meet Greater Lowell’s challenges, GLCF’s work has helped tens of thousands in the community.
Jay Linnehan, president and CEO of GLCF, says the foundation has awarded more than $3 million in scholarship money over the past 25 years, allowing thousands of students the opportunity to get an education. “Supporting students’ college dreams is an important part of our mission to improve our community, particularly as many of those students return to our region to settle down and contribute as good citizens.”
Linnehan says the one thing that the pandemic has taught GLCF is that by being the boots on the ground and having solid relationships with the area nonprofits, the foundation was able to quickly adapt to meet the needs of the community during COVID-19. Through grants from the GLCF COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund and the Massachusetts COVID Relief Fund, the foundation has supported more than 130 local nonprofit organizations with grants totaling over $5 million.
“I have learned that community foundations do much more than make grants,” shares Chet Szablak, GLCF Board Chair. “They also convene public and private groups around issues of importance to our community. In addition, they partner with other local and national foundations. By leveraging this support, we accomplish much more together than anyone could alone.”
A celebration honoring the 25 years will be held on June 2, 2022, as part of GLCF’s Annual Meeting. Details will be made available closer to the date on the GLCF website.
“We are looking forward to taking the time just to say ‘thank you’ to the community for all their support and celebrating their generosity and impact for the past 25 years,” Linnehan said.
To find out more about the Greater Lowell Community Foundation, go to www.glcfoundation.org.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation –Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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LOWELL – A local business looking to hire engineers set up a scholarship program to help bring more woman into the field. A 24-year-old started a modest scholarship, funded in part by walking the Appalachian Trail, to help students at her high school pursue college degrees. Anonymous donors endowed a two-year scholarship for community college students after being inspired by the generosity of a complete stranger.
These are just a few of the unique scholarships the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) has helped benevolent individuals, groups and businesses set up over the years – all with the goal of giving back to their communities.
“The Foundation manages about 400 scholarships per year,” said Jay Linnehan, GLCF President & CEO. “Education is a big part of our mission. It is, and always will be, a gateway to success.”
Scholarships can be as varied as the students they benefit, added Howard Amidon, GLCF’s Vice President of Philanthropy. And it’s his job to make donors’ wishes come true.
“I work with individuals and businesses to support their philanthropic goals,” Amidon explained. That can mean helping donors who reach out to the Foundation with very specific plans for a scholarship. Or working closely with altruistic individuals who don’t always have all the details figured out.
“Sometimes donors come in and say, ‘I want to do something good, but I don’t have anything specific in mind.’ In that case, we ask them, ‘What are your goals? What do you hope to accomplish?’ ”
Amidon is particularly excited about GLCF’s new Verda Annan Scholarship.
It was established in honor of Verda Tetteh (now Verda Annan), then a 17-year-old Harvard-bound student who graduated from Fitchburg High School last June. At her graduation ceremony, Annan spontaneously declined the $40,000 FHS General Excellence Award she had just won. Instead, she asked the administration to pass on the award to a student – or students — headed to community college who needed it more than she did.
After reading about Annan’s story, Amidon explained, a couple contacted GLCF with a unique request. “They wanted to emulate Verda’s generosity by establishing a two-year scholarship to help support graduating Lowell High School students go on to community college.”
And, he added, the donors wanted to name the scholarship in honor of Annan, while they remained anonymous. Beginning this spring, the Verda Annan Scholarship will award $2,500 a year for two years to a qualified LHS student planning to attend any community college.
“These very generous people were inspired by someone they didn’t know, and saw that as a way to give back,” said GLCF President Linnehan. “They have succeeded because of their educations, and community colleges are very important to them. And, over time, as their endowment grows, this scholarship will grow, too.”
Annan, who changed her last name when she turned 18 to match her mother’s, was totally surprised when she learned about the prospect of an endowed scholarship established in her name. “My jaw dropped,” she said.
“I’m so honored. When I initially gave up the FHS scholarship, I never imagined my actions would have a ripple effect. These donors went out of their way to be so generous and to help more students.”
Annan is also pleased the scholarship supports community college students. “When I was applying to colleges, there was a huge emphasis on being the ‘perfect’ student. We were advised that we needed to have a 4.0 GPA, be active in student government, in clubs, and play a sport.
“But I understand that a good student who can be successful in college may not always check all those boxes,” she said. “And they may not have the resources to be engaged in those kinds of activities.”
With the help of a GLCF scholarship, local students can keep moving forward, said Linnehan. “It’s a privilege for the Foundation to help donors create scholarships to provide the resources these talented students need to continue their education.”
To learn more about GLCF scholarships, visit: glcfoundation.org.
About Greater Lowell Community Foundation
Established in 1997, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation (GLCF) is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 390 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. With financial assets of more than $55 million, GLCF annually awards grants and scholarships to hundreds of worthy nonprofits and students. It is powered by the winning combination of donor-directed giving, personal attention from Foundation staff, and an in-depth understanding of local needs. The generosity of our donors has enabled the Community Foundation to award more than $25 million to the Greater Lowell community.
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