Canton GTCF Grant Awards 2025 press release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Theresa Sullivan-Barger tsullivanbarger@gmail.com or 860-805-4404
Canton Community Fund Awards 11 HFPG Grants
With funds from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving’s Greater Together Community Fund, the Canton Community Advisory Committee awarded grants to 11 nonprofit organizations serving Canton residents. In this fourth round of funding, Advisory Committee members carefully reviewed all the applications to fulfill the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving’s (HFPG) mission to enrich the lives of a broad cross-section of residents and fulfill unmet needs.
The Canton Advisory Committee awarded grants from $1,000 to $10,000 each for a total of $49,491 to organizations and programs serving kids with different abilities, students facing food insecurity, seniors, domestic violence survivors and people facing a health crisis. Grants also will help provide physical plant needs for local nonprofits and increase safety for people.
Over the past four years, the HFPG’s Canton Greater Together Fund has awarded 34 grants totaling $135,021 to address a wide range of community needs and improvements.
The following grants were awarded in June:
o Hartford Interval House: $5,000 for services to Canton residents facing domestic abuse.
o Canton High School: $1,000 toward the Substance-Free Graduation Party.
o Canton Lions Club: $1,370 for volunteer safety equipment to help Lions Club members stay safe when helping other local nonprofits.
o Canton Historical Museum: $7,500 to support the Historical Society’s exterior painting project.
o FOCUS Center for Autism: $2,415 toward autism awareness programs.
o Gifts of Love: $2,038 for food for Canton Intermediate School students facing food insecurity.
o Healing Meals: $7,768 for healing meals and community support for Canton residents facing a health crisis.
o New Horizons, parent company of Cherry Brook Health Care Center: $5,000 in support of van rides for recreational transport for seniors living at the nonprofit nursing home, most of whom are on Medicaid.
o Roaring Brook Nature Center: $10,000 to replace outdated exterior lighting to comply with the Dark Sky initiative.
o Special Olympics of Connecticut: $2,500 to support Special Olympics activities for Canton residents.
o SpiritHorse Therapeutic Riding Center of Canton: $4,900 for its Canton Summer Equine Therapy program, which combines riding, caring for the horses and arts and crafts for Canton children with special needs.
All Canton residents ages 14 and older are welcome to serve on the Canton Greater Together Community Fund Advisory Committee, as long as they are not elected officials or running for office. New members are always welcome. The Committee meets monthly from September through June. Please go to the Canton Community Fund page at https://www.hfpg.org/donors/ways-to-give/community-funds/canton and fill out an application if you’re interested in serving. The following Canton residents serve on the committee: Mark Picket, co-chair; David Delcampe, co-chair; Anne Hunter, Maggie Meehan, Kaylah Milligan, Rie Poirier-Campbell, Dave Santis, Theresa Sullivan-Barger and Alan Weiner.
About the Greater Together Community Fund
In 2019, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving established $100,000 Greater Together Community Funds for each of the 29 towns in the Foundation’s region, which includes Canton. The purpose of the community funds is to support residents in taking ownership around the needs in their towns, encourage broad and inclusive civic engagement and anchor the Hartford Foundation in each town. To mark its Centennial year in 2025, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving announced a new $2.9 million investment in the Greater Together Community Funds, with $100,000 going to each of the 29 towns.
To learn more about the Canton Greater Together Community Fund, grant project guidelines and how to apply for grant funding, go to: https://www.hfpg.org/donors/ways-to-give/community-funds/canton. Email questions to CommunityFundCantonCT@gmail.com.
In addition to grant opportunities, the Greater Together Community Funds also create an opportunity for organizations and individuals to make tax-deductible contributions to the 29 Greater Together Community Funds to support their towns. There have been several contributions to Greater Together Community Funds, and all donations are welcome both large and small.
The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is the community foundation for Hartford and 28 surrounding communities. Made possible by the gifts of generous individuals, families and organizations, the Foundation has awarded grants of more than $1 billion since its founding in 1925. For more information about the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, visit https://www.hfpg.org or call 860-548-1888.