Grant Recipients

• A Better Life (ABL) (2011-2017, Total Granted: $3,113,628)
• The Compass Project (2011-2013, Total Granted: $967,595)
• Improving Access to Health (2011-2015, Total Granted: $947,195)
• Worcester Initiative for Supported Reentry (WISR) (2011-2017, Total Granted: $2,322,347)

• Choices: Youth at Risk in Webster/Dudley (2007-2011, Total Granted: $734,898)
• Home Again (2007-2013, Total Granted: $2,205,837)
• Hunger-Free & Healthy (2007-2012, Total Granted: $1,557,443)
• The Winchendon Project (2007-2012, Total Granted: $1,486,932)
• Women’s HIV/Domestic Violence Initiative (2007-2009, Total Granted: $620,089)

• Central Massachusetts Oral Health Initiative (CMOHI) (2000-2011, Total Granted: $3,643,840)
• Child Abuse Prevention and Protection Collaborative (2001-2007, Total Granted: $1,961,778)
• Oral Health Initiative of N. Central Mass (OHINCM) (2001-2008, Total Granted: $2,253,672)
• Together for Kids (TFK) (2001-2009, Total Granted: $1,779,018)

African Community Education received a $125,000 grant to renovate and better equip the kitchen at its Worcester facility, expanding the organization’s capacity to serve culturally appropriate meals for youth, offer nutrition classes, and provide space for newly arriving Haitian families to prepare meals.

Center of Hope Foundation received a $125,000 grant to modernize bathrooms and plumbing systems in a Southbridge facility housing its day habilitation program, which serves nearly 120 individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Children’s Advocacy Center of Franklin County and North Quabbin received a $86,900 grant for construction costs associated with establishing an outpatient clinic in Orange, thereby expanding its capacity to provide specialized mental health services for child victims of sexual abuse and their families in the North Quabbin region.

Choices Inc. received a $80,250 grant to purchase a 15-passenger van, equipment, and supplies for the organization’s Early Diversion Worcester program, a comprehensive system of care that diverts, intervenes, and disrupts the school-to-prison pipeline in collaboration with community partners.

Gardner Community Action Committee received a $115,000 grant to renovate and relocate to a 5,800-square-foot facility made available rent-free by the City of Gardner, significantly enhancing the organization’s capacity to provide food distribution, emergency assistance, and other services for those in need throughout the Greater Gardner community.

Growing Places received a $109,041 grant for development of a customized IT solution integrating disparate platforms and new software for inventory management to enhance efficiency, expand service capacity and better support local food consumers, institutional buyers and small farmers in North Central Massachusetts.

Quinsigamond Community College received a $124,254 grant to replace six outdated dental chairs and equipment stations at its Worcester-based dental clinic, which trains an average of 40 dental hygiene students and 20 dental assistant students annually and provides free or deeply discounted oral health care to vulnerable Worcester County populations.

Worcester RISE for Health received a $125,000 grant to build out and equip clinical space and implement an electronic medical record system for the organization to provide maternal child health care services for newly arriving refugees and immigrants in Worcester.

Abby’s House received a $120,000 grant for accessibility-related renovations to its overnight shelter for homeless women and children in Worcester, a component of a larger effort to convert the shelter to a non-congregate model and expand its capacity from nine to 18 beds.

Boston Area Gleaners received a $81,500 grant for the purchase of a refrigerated truck to help facilitate expansion of its farm crop gleaning, surplus food recovery, and distribution services into Worcester County.

Building Futures received a $105,213 grant for purchase of furniture, appliances and supplies to equip its 24-unit permanent supportive housing development in Worcester called “A Place to Live” aimed to serve the chronically homeless population.

Camp Starfish received a $110,000 grant to replace an unusable basketball court and tennis courts at its year-round campsite serving children and young adults from Central Massachusetts with emotional, behavioral, social, and learning challenges, enhancing access to recreational activities and team sports and supporting overall well-being.

Employment Options received a $70,935 grant for commercial kitchen equipment to launch a new culinary workforce training program for individuals with mental illness participating in its Clubhouse program in Fitchburg.

GAAMHA received a $130,000 grant for room furnishings and kitchen equipment to outfit a new 32-bed recovery home for women with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders in Athol.

Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center received a $110,000 grant for purchase and installation of an elevator to ensure ADA accessibility at its new 44-unit, affordable housing development for low-income veterans and their families in Winchendon.

Project Just Because received a $120,000 grant for the purchase of a freezer trailer to significantly increase the organization’s capacity to accept, store and distribute donations of protein, dairy products and fresh produce to support food-insecure individuals and families and other local food pantries.

Regional Environmental Council received a $95,400 grant for warehouse renovations to increase the capacity of its Mobile Farmers Market program, connecting more food-insecure residents of Worcester, Southbridge, and Webster with healthy, affordable, and culturally relevant produce.

Southeast Asian Coalition of Central MA received a $120,403 grant for purchase and installation of equipment to create an indoor hydroponic mushroom farm at the agency’s headquarters in Worcester and build the capacity of its Food Security program that caters to the cultural needs of clients.

Community Health Center of Franklin County received a $88,340 grant for buildout of office space to maximize patient care and outcomes at its North Quabbin facility, which serves more than 3,500 patients per year.

GAAMHA received a $61,000 grant for installation of a new roof and windows at Pathway House, a 27-bed residential program for adult men with substance use disorders, which serves an average of 70 individuals annually.

Guild of St Agnes received a $118,000 grant to construct a 3,000 S.F. outdoor playground at its new state-of-the-art childcare facility and higher education learning lab on Mill Street in Worcester.

Making Opportunity Count received a $120,000 grant to build out space for a new Family Health clinic in Fitchburg offering no-cost/low-cost sexual and reproductive health care for people in the North Central region.

Milford Youth Center received a $115,250 grant for replacement of the HVAC and steam unit heating systems for the gym and basement areas of its facility to address air quality issues and increase operating efficiency.

Restoration Recovery Center received a $33,562 grant to build capacity of its Recovery Coaching program by formalizing a partnership with a local behavioral health center for referrals and third-party billing, and for purchase of related software to enhance data collection and reporting capabilities.

Thrive Support & Advocacy received a $50,998 grant for furnishings and equipment to enable expansion of its Family Support Center in Worcester to include a new allergen-sensitive food pantry and additional space for after-school, recreational and vocational programming.

Western Mass Training Consortium received a $67,627 grant for furnishings and technology to equip a new facility housing its Recovery Center of HOPE, a peer-led recovery program in the Quaboag region.

World Farmers received a $120,000 grant for buildout of a new food aggregation and distribution hub adjacent to its main office in Lancaster to meet growing demand for its Community Supported Agriculture program and general wholesale operations selling cultural crops throughout the region.

YOU, Inc. received a $56,795 grant for translation services and culturally aligned tools to equip a Bi-Lingual Welcome Center at the co-located Behavioral Health Center and Family Resource Center in Southbridge aimed to increase accessibility of services for people with limited English proficiency.

Youth Villages received a $67,573 grant for upfront costs associated with scaling its Intercept for Emergency Diversion program in Central Massachusetts, addressing the issue of youth boarding in hospitals as they wait for inpatient psychiatric beds.

Building Futures received a $59,250 grant for equipment to expand its Terraponics Program, a method of growing organic produce year-round using tiered racks, benefitting Worcester Housing Authority residents and helping to promote healthy eating and address food insecurity.

Catholic Charities of Worcester County received a $75,000 grant for facility renovations for its Crozier House ¾ Graduate Program, providing housing for men with substance use disorders upon completion of residential treatment.

Community Health Connections received a $100,000 grant for buildout of four urgent care rooms at its new Community Health Center in Gardner that will also offer primary care, dental, and behavioral health services.

Girls Inc. received a $41,882 grant to purchase equipment and furniture for transformation of a large meeting hall into smaller classrooms to expand program capacity and better accommodate work in small groups, which is more conducive for addressing social-emotional needs of participants.

Guild of St. Agnes received a $90,000 grant for renovation of its childcare center in Gardner, which provides quality, affordable, early education and school-age programs for children from 15 months to 12 years of age.

Lovin’ Spoonfuls received a $75,000 grant for purchase of a refrigerated truck to enable expansion of its perishable food rescue and redistribution program into Worcester County to address food insecurity.

Mount Wachusett Community College received a $73,903 grant to upgrade sterilization equipment at its dental education clinic located within the Community Health Connections Community Health Center in Fitchburg.

Viability received a $15,350 grant to purchase exercise equipment for its accredited Tradewinds Clubhouse in Southbridge, which provides vocational and life skills training and social support for people experiencing mental illness.

Building Futures received a $49,998 grant for facility and technology upgrades to the Worcester Housing Authority’s Youth Center in Great Brook Valley, which provides youth ages 5-14 with tutoring and homework help.

CENTRO received a $50,000 grant to hire a community health worker to assess the needs of people using its food pantry and refer them to other services CENTRO offers if they are eligible.

Christopher House of Worcester received a $39,082 grant for a program to enhance the skills of its first line managers and train peer mentors with the goal of reducing the turnover rates of both nurses and certified nursing assistants.

The Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center received a $60,000 grant for four dental chairs as part of its plans to expand its Milford site to include dental services, optometry and a 340B pharmacy.

Genesis Club received a $40,000 grant to create a “virtual clubhouse” to enable Genesis Club to reach out to people recovering from mental illness who cannot access its physical location, allowing people to access clubhouse services remotely.

Jeffrey’s House received a $23,772 grant for the installation of sprinklers in three sober living houses it operates in Fitchburg and for accessibility renovations in two of the houses.

Living in Freedom Together (LIFT) received a $19,000 grant for the installation of sprinklers at its residential home for survivors of commercial sexual exploitation.

LUK, Inc. received a $50,000 grant to support telebehavioral health services for students in middle and high schools in Central Massachusetts.

NEADS World Class Service Dogs received a $50,000 grant for the construction of its Behavioral Check List space to test puppies to determine their eligibility to enter NEADS training programs as Service Dogs.

Open Sky Community Services received a $45,777 grant to expand telepsychiatry services in its group homes by installing and enhancing telehealth technology.

Quinsigamond Community College received a $70,790 grant to upgrade instructional equipment in their Radiologic Technology program to better prepare students for their clinical rotations and entering the workforce.

Seven Hills Family Services received a $49,620 grant to upgrade AV equipment in order to record, edit and translate training sessions offered at its family support centers in Worcester, Fitchburg and Sturbridge so that families who cannot attend the sessions can access them online at their convenience.

The South Middlesex Opportunity Council received a $50,000 grant for the pre-development costs associated with converting the second floor of a building in Worcester into a 50-bed permanent emergency shelter facility.

Worcester Common Ground (WCG) received a $100,000 grant to install a rooftop greenhouse on an affordable housing project WCG is developing in Worcester which will allow residents to grow produce for themselves and their families.