Adirondack Foundation awards over $950,000 in Generous Acts grants
Funding supports basic needs, educational pathways, and economic vitality and civic engagement
Monday, May 22, 2023
LAKE PLACID — Adirondack Foundation has awarded over $950,000 in grants to meet critical needs and drive positive change in communities across the Adirondack region.
The Foundation’s Generous Acts program awards grants annually to organizations, schools and communities working to address basic needs, improve educational pathways, or strengthen community vitality and civic engagement in the Adirondack Park, all of Clinton and Franklin counties and the Akwesasne Mohawk Territory. The grant program is funded by thousands of local donors who entrust the Foundation to identify where philanthropic dollars can make a positive impact.
“These grants are supporting our most vulnerable neighbors, energizing our Main Streets, building new recreational trails and helping people who are homeless or unable to find affordable places to live,” said Cali Brooks, Adirondack Foundation’s president and CEO. “Generous Acts is also removing barriers to post-high school achievement and investing in career training. Thanks to the exceptional generosity of our neighbors, communities across our region are stronger.”
“Through partnership with our expanding network of engaged nonprofits and business, education, and government leaders, we are generating transformational impact,” said Joe Steiniger, chair of Adirondack Foundation’s Board of Trustees. “At the same time, the commitment of our board, staff, volunteers and Community Council members enables us to reach every mile of our region and better visualize the solutions before us.”
A total of 121 organizations received $957,099 in 2023. These figures include nearly $360,000 for basic needs, approximately $270,000 for educational pathways and $325,300 for economic vitality and civic engagement.
Basic needs
Basic needs grants strive to ensure that communities have equitable access to affordable and nutritious food, stable housing and opportunities for healthy living. Recipients this year include North Country Ministry, which will provide a caseworker to travel to communities in the southern Adirondacks to bring social safety net services to people in need. In Plattsburgh, the Joint Council for Economic Opportunity received a grant to provide fuel aid for local residents. The Ticonderoga Revitalization Alliance is using its Generous Acts grant to address childcare needs in its community. Elsewhere in Essex County, the Elizabethtown Social Center received a Generous Acts grant for its Teens Off Screens Initiative.
Educational pathways
Funding for educational pathways aims to help all children benefit from high-quality early learning and development, provide meaningful opportunities to pursue post-secondary education, support career training, and pave the way for gainful employment and fulfilling lives. College and career readiness initiatives in Tupper Lake, Newcomb, Beekmantown, Raquette Lake, Lake Placid, Plattsburgh and many other Adirondack communities all received Generous Acts support this year. Elsewhere, a grant to the Family YMCA of the Glens Falls Area will look to close learning gaps among students, and a grant to the Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York will build life skills and enhance environmental education.
Economic vitality & civic engagement
Economic vitality and civic engagement grants help communities provide equitable and just economic opportunities, attract residents and businesses, and inspire civic engagement. Grants to the Appleby Foundation in Au Sable Forks and Indian Lake Community Development Corporation are spurring community revitalization initiatives. In Johnsburg, the Upper Hudson Trails Alliance is using support from Generous Acts to complete a 10-kilometer community recreation trail. Grants to Adirondack Housing Development Corporation and Cooperative Development Institute will assist with funding the predevelopment of projects and developing tools to increase attainable housing in the region. A grant to the Leaveners Community Foundation will support a professional conditions assessment and an adaptive reuse plan of the historic former Essex County Home for the purpose of addressing the current housing crisis.
To view a complete list of 2023 Generous Acts recipients, visit adirondackfoundation.org/2023-
To learn more about Generous Acts at Adirondack Foundation, or to make a gift in support of future grants, visit adirondackfoundation.org or contact Jennifer Russell at jennifer.russell@