February 14, 2011

hjweinbergfoundation.org

Grant distribution recap;
almost $100 million again this year

Greetings from everyone at the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation!   Another fiscal year draws to a close, and the Foundation is pleased to announce the distribution of nearly $100 million in grants through its various program areas.  Almost $40 million of that is helping to fund programs and services in Maryland, one of our hometown communities.  Here are just a few of the recent highlights:

Recent Grants

Older Adults

This is the single largest area of grantmaking by the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation.  The Foundation remains committed to providing support to older adults to live dignified, meaningful, and engaged lives in the community and to maintain their independence for as long as possible.

Washington County Commission on Aging
Hagerstown, MD
Capital grant of $250,000 approved for the construction of the first dedicated Senior Center to be built in Washington County, Maryland. This project is a unique collaboration between the County, the Commission on Aging, and Hagerstown Community College. The Senior Center will be located on the campus where older adults will have access to all of the courses and activities offered by the college, and students will be exposed to the field of aging services through volunteer opportunities. The Foundation has supported the construction of many senior centers, most recently for MAC, Inc. in Salisbury, Maryland, because these Centers allow older adults to obtain the services they need to age within their communities.  http://www.wccoaging.org

Augsburg Lutheran Home and Village
Baltimore County, MD
Capital grant of $100,000 to Augsburg Lutheran Home for costs associated with the renovation of its current two-floor Nursing Care Center and construction of a new two-floor, 36,375 square foot addition.  The new Nursing Care Center will employ a culture change approach to its construction and service provision known as Wellspring, which focuses on providing home-like care using a resident-centered approach in “old bones”, or traditional, facilities. When completed, Augsburg will house a total of 123 residents in six distinct neighborhoods or households, many in private rooms with private or semi-private baths.  http://www.augsburg.org/

Basic Human Needs & Health

The Foundation supports programs that meet the basic needs of individuals, families, and communities. These include programs in the areas of homeless services, economic assistance, food security, and health.

Health Care for the Homeless
Baltimore, MD
$100,000 general operating grant to support the work of Health Care for the Homeless of Maryland (HCH).  The organization moved into its new facility, the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Building, in February 2010 and has seen an increase in client visits – 7,000 more than in 2009.  HCH saw 6,300 patients through 65,000 encounters in Baltimore City last year.  Services offered include medical care for all ages, dental care, addiction treatment, outpatient mental health treatment, vision screening, HIV testing, street outreach, and supportive housing.  The mission of Health Care for the Homeless meets several of the Foundation’s goals within the Basic Human Needs & Health program area: providing safe and stable housing through its Housing First program, providing food through a food pantry maintained on site, and providing health care to a vulnerable population.  http://www.hchmd.org

St. Vincent de Paul of Baltimore
Baltimore, MD
$75,000 general operating grant to support 15 programs benefitting more than 53,000 individuals and families.  St. Vincent de Paul helps people meet basic needs and improve their quality of life by providing a wide range of services including meals and emergency food distribution, clothing distribution, emergency shelter and financial assistance, job skills training, and child and youth services.
http://www.vincentbaltimore.org/

Maryland Small Grants Program

The Foundation initiated the Maryland Small Grants Program (MSGP) just over three years ago to help eligible nonprofits more easily and efficiently apply for a grant.  In most cases, it takes only 50 days to go from "Our application is enclosed" to "Your check is in the mail."  

St. Mary’s Outreach Center, Inc.
Baltimore, MD
$15,000 operating grant to support services that provide assistance in obtaining entitlement benefits for older residents of the Hampden, Medfield, Remington, and Woodberry neighborhoods in Baltimore City.  In the past year, the organization helped more than 1,000 clients to secure Medicare benefits, Maryland Energy Assistance, and Renters and Homeowners Tax Credits, among other programs.  The executive director is a certified specialist, able to provide local residents with emergency financial assistance with everyday bills such as BGE turn-off notices, water bills, prescriptions, and medical costs.  http://www.stmarysoutreach.ang-md.org/about.php

Turnaround, Inc.
Baltimore, MD
$25,000 grant to support the expansion of services to victims of sexual assault.  The agency is a partner in the Sexual Assault Response Team that has been charged with the overhaul of Baltimore City’s response to sexual assault victims.  It is assisting with the development of new protocols and procedures to ensure proper support for victims and has developed a service delivery model that will be integrated with the revised police protocols.   http://www.turnaroundinc.org/

Patrick Allison House, Inc.
Baltimore, MD
$20,000 grant to support a program that provides transitional housing to homeless men in recovery from addiction.  Residents of Patrick Allison House receive services including individual, group and recovery counseling, health care, GED tutoring, computer classes, life skills training, and financial management assistance as a result of partnerships with other service providers in the community.  Last year, 21 men completed the program, of which 16 moved into permanent housing and remained employed at the end of a year.  http://patrickallisonhouse.org/

National Kidney Foundation of Maryland (NKF)
Baltimore, MD
$25,000 grant to support the Patient Emergency Financial Assistance Program that supports low-income patients with chronic kidney disease, who are in financial crisis and need assistance to meet basic needs.  The NKF reaches out to high-risk communities at significantly higher risk for kidney disease than the general population, due to high incidence of hypertension and diabetes.  Last year, 882 individuals received almost $174,000 in emergency assistance for housing, utilities or fuel, transportation costs, and prescription medications, among other needs.  http://www.kidneymd.org/

Weinberg Fellows Class of 2011

The Weinberg Fellows Program, in partnership with the University of Baltimore, is now in its fifth year. Applications were at an all-time high for the 2011 class.   Nineteen executive directors of community-based nonprofit agencies serving disadvantaged individuals across Maryland will embark on a year-long professional development program.  The program is designed to enhance leadership skills and promote collaboration among the region’s nonprofits.

Here is the list of this year’s class of Weinberg Fellows:

  • Randall T. Acosta, Boys and Girls Clubs of Harford County
  • Elizabeth Briscoe, Action in Maturity, Inc.
  • Sandra Brown, Mid Shore Pro Bono
  • John Dumas, Service Coordination, Inc.
  • Michael Dyer, Epilepsy Association of the Eastern Shore
  • Misty Fae, Conflict Resolution Center of Baltimore County
  • David A. Greenberg, The League for People with Disabilities
  • Gayle E. Headen, Union Baptist – Harvey Johnson Head Start
  • Amy John, Baltimore Educational Scholarship Trust
  • Eileen Rivera Ley, Uniting for Life, Inc.
  • Latavia D. Little, Treatment Resources for Youth, Inc.
  • Martha J. Meehan, Jewish Recovery Houses, Inc.
  • Claudia Nagle, Diakonia, Inc.
  • Elissa Malter Schwartz, Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse
  • Jessica Smith-Harper, Village of Hope, Inc.
  • Gustavo A. Torres, CASA de Maryland, Inc.
  • Christine Tyler, Prison Outreach Ministry
  • Kathleen Westcoat, Baltimore HealthCare Access, Inc.
  • Madeline Yates, Maryland Campus Compact

Program director kudos!

Congratulations to some of the Weinberg Foundation’s fine program directors for external work and development. 

Marci Hunn (Workforce Development) has just been accepted to the Leadership Maryland Program.  She will be the first Weinberg Foundation employee to participate.   Founded in 1992, Leadership Maryland is an independent, educational, nonprofit organization designed to inform top-level executives, from the public and private sectors, about the critical issues, challenges, and opportunities facing the state of Maryland and its regions.  Hunn is one of 52 statewide leaders selected to participate in the eight-month program.

Amy Gross (Education, Children, Youth & Families) recently finished a Graduate Certificate in Urban Education from Johns Hopkins School of Education.  Amy also recently graduated from the Greater Baltimore Committee Leadership Program. 

Michael Marcus (Older Adults) just started this same one-year long GBC leadership program.  Michael is also sharing his expertise as part of the Associated’s Senior Life Task Force which reviews programs and services for Jewish older adults in metropolitan Baltimore.  He’s now serving on the Howard County Adult Public Guardianship Review Board, appointed by County Executive Ken Ulman.  The Board reviews situations of disabled persons under public agency guardianship. And Michael has been asked to serve on the National Policy Advisory Panel of the National Leadership Initiative to End Elder Homelessness.  This is the first national body dedicated to working on issues of homelessness among older adults.

Marci, Amy, and Michael...mazel tov!

Hold the Date

And finally, it’s never too early to mark your calendar for a truly special evening with several hundred of the Foundation’s closest friends.  This year’s Annual Community Gathering will be held Tuesday night, November 15.

© 2011 The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation.
All rights reserved.

 

© 2011 The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation