East Hill Woods Fund to Award Grants for Organizations That Serve Seniors Beginning in 2011

WATERBURY – January 3, 2011 – Beginning in 2011, the East Hill Woods Fund at the Connecticut Community Foundation (CCF) will award grants to organizations that serve seniors in our region.

“We are excited to have a robust senior initiative grant program in place at CCF,” said John Michaels, a member of the advisory committee and of the East Hill Woods board who established the fund at CCF in late 2009.

With income earned from the $9.2 million permanent advised fund, CCF seeks to assist seniors in connecting them to information and services so they can remain in their homes and be active members of their community.

CCF will award senior initiative grants specifically to connect more seniors to information and services particularly the CHOICES program offered by the Western Connecticut Area Agency on Aging. Examples include expansion of current social or recreation programs to attract more seniors and then connect them to information and services, introduction of new programs or activities to reach isolated seniors, sponsorships of programs to attract seniors and connect them to services.

Funding can be used for new, improved, or expanded programs and services; planning, assessments and related efforts; development and implementation of service networks; or organizational capacity building such as development of a senior to senior volunteer program to reach isolated seniors and connect them to services, design of a data system to track seniors and services provided, mapping of existing services for seniors, creation of local networks of service including faith-based entities to coordinate information and services, or support for agencies serving seniors to develop their boards, conduct strategic planning or support accreditation

Focus Groups Bring Senior Issues to Light
Last spring, CCF conducted focus groups, surveys, and interviews to learn about senior issues in Greater Waterbury and Litchfield County. Social service providers confirmed that the biggest challenge is assisting our oldest and frailest seniors. Currently, more than one in 10 local residents are older than 85, the fastest growing sector of our elderly population. Residents said home maintenance, home healthcare and fear of isolation were their three top priorities.

Armed with the results, the advisory committee set the fund’s goals and strategies.

“CCF was able to make our vision of this fund a reality,” said Michaels. “They were able to bring the right people in the community together to help us determine the best way to put this fund into action and start helping people and the organizations that serve them right away.”

“By reaching out to the community in the last year, we better understand the needs of our area seniors, learned more about existing resources that are in place for them, and were able to generate ideas for addressing the needs that are most important to our older neighbors,” added Carol O’Donnell, associate CEO at CCF. “We believe that we will make a bigger impact and help seniors more effectively by focusing our funding on supporting organizations that enable them to remain in their homes.”

In December, CCF followed up with area nonprofits and hosted information sessions about the East Hill Woods Fund’s grant making priorities in Cheshire, Waterbury, Southbury, New Milford and Litchfield.

Deadline for Letter of Inquiry
Letters of inquiry for the East Hill Woods Fund are due January 14, 2011. Get more information, or contact 203-753-1315, grants@conncf.org.