Four local nonprofit organizations are competing for a $100,000 grant from the 21st Century Fund, to support their respective plans to better serve the community.
How the winner will be selected is different from most grant programs.
The 21st Century Fund, part of the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, is a giving circle. Members pay a one-time, lifetime fee to join the fund. Every two years, members review up-and-coming projects and vote to choose the grant recipient.
“That $100,000 grant has made a really significant difference in impactful projects that most of us as individuals couldn’t do on our own,” said Betsy Constantine, president and CEO of the Community Foundation.
Along with supporting nonprofit organizations, the 21st Century Fund’s approach makes an impact in other ways, Constantine said.
Grandparents have bought fund memberships for their grandchildren, to introduce them to the world of philanthropy and build generational bonds. Some of the fund’s members don’t live in Buffalo, but use their memberships to stay connected to what’s happening here.
The four finalists for this year’s grant are:
• Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology, to support renovations of a facility at 368 Sycamore St., where the program is relocating.
• Family Promise of Western New York, to help with pre-development expenses for a planned second homeless shelter.
• Heart, Love & Soul, to upgrade and expand its facilities in Niagara Falls.
• The Tool Library, to support the purchase and renovations of its new home at 2626 Main St.
The finalists will make their pitches to fund members on April 18 in Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Hohn Auditorium. The members will vote, and the winner will be announced that night.
The fund has about 300 active members. At the semifinal program in early March, 105 votes were cast. Members don’t have to attend in person to vote.
Joining the fund costs $2,100 for any individual, family or…
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