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SPRINGFIELD — The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts announced new grants totaling $725,000 to 26 local nonprofits through the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley, targeting employment assistance, food insecurity, homelessness and foreclosure prevention, and other immediate needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Including this latest round, the Response Fund has awarded more than $5.5 million in grants to nonprofits in Western Mass. that are on the front lines of serving vulnerable populations affected by the crisis. The statewide Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund has provided $4.3 million in funding to support the Community Foundation’s response to the pandemic crisis in this region.

The 26 nonprofits that received the most recent grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund from the Pioneer Valley include Amherst Community Connections, Amherst Survival Center, Brick House Community Resource Center, Center for New Americans, Chicopee Boys & Girls Club, Community Upliftment Program, Dress for Success of Western Massachusetts, Franklin and North Quabbin Children’s Advocacy Center, Franklin County Community Meals Program, LifePath, Mary Lyon Education Foundation, Mental Health Assoc., Montague Catholic Social Ministries, Pioneer Valley Project, Pioneer Valley Workers Center, Project New Hope, Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, Rivera and Rivera Acts Against Foreclosure, Safe Passage, Springfield Partners for Community Action, St. Mary’s Parish, Sunshine Village, United Service Organization of Pioneer Valley, Valley Opportunity Council, Wheelhouse Farm, and Westfield State Foundation.

The Response Fund has raised $7.6 million from 650 donors, including foundations, businesses, and individuals, as well as resources from the statewide Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund.

According to Katie Allan Zobel, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, “the pandemic is adversely impacting individuals, families, and communities in the region. This round of grants includes funds to address the economic instability that many are facing.”

The Community Foundation welcomes additional donations to the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley. One hundred percent of donations go to community needs. Gifts can be made online at www.communityfoundation.org/covid19.

COVID-19 Daily News

SPRINGFIELD — A fourth round of grants, totaling $226,000, from the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley has been announced, with healthcare and medical centers in Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties receiving the largest portion of the new round as they battle the impact of the disease on the region with surging admissions to hospitals.

Grants were also directed to youth-serving organizations and to programs providing food access to those impacted by the crisis. To date, the Response Fund has granted more than $1.3 million to local organizations.

Grants were made to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Baystate Noble Hospital in Westfield, Baystate Wing Hospital in Palmer, and Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield (through the Baystate Health Foundation); Holyoke Medical Center; Mercy Medical Center in Springfield; Shriners Hospitals for Children – Springfield; and Cooley Dickinson Health Care in Northampton.

Also receiving grants were the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Westfield; the Brick House Community Resource Center in Turners Falls; the Center for Human Development, for its Family Outreach program in Amherst; the Community Adolescent Resource and Education Center in Holyoke; Franklin County DIAL/SELF in Greenfield; Friends of Children in Hadley; and Our Community Table/Westfield Soup Kitchen in Westfield.

Since launching the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley, the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts has raised $3.6 million from 350 individuals, families, foundations, and companies within and outside the region.

“As the impact on our region unfolds, more urgent needs are emerging, and the healthcare systems in the three counties have been hit particularly hard,” said Katie Allan Zobel, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts. “These grants to the healthcare institutions in the three-county area recognize the critical importance of the healthcare infrastructure in Western Massachusetts. This latest round also targets programs that are working with isolated youth of low-income families who are particularly vulnerable during this crisis. Grants also help to provide more food and nutrition access to those in need.”

With the announcement that public schools will be closed for the remainder of the academic year, Zobel added, the Community Foundation will be conducting additional outreach to determine needs going forward for young people in the region. “We are striving to be strategic in our grant making, and needs related to youth, who are increasingly vulnerable, are emerging as a priority.”

The Community Foundation welcomes additional donations to the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley. Gifts can be made online at www.communityfoundation.org/covid19.