Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation

$20,000 Challenge Grant Announced to Fund Emergency Aid for Berkshire County Residents

December 3, 2009

Great Barrington, MA—Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation announced today that Joseph and Carol Reich of Sheffield, MA have offered a challenge grant to support Neighbor-to-Neighbor in Berkshire County. If the community contributes $80,000, the couple will contribute $20,000, so that the foundation will have $100,000 to provide emergency financial assistance to local residents.

“Though times are tough, this is also a remarkable and generous moment in Berkshire County,” said Jennifer Dowley, president of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. “So many local families are suddenly struggling for food, housing and employment and at the same time, it’s heartening to see neighbors doing everything they can to help each other. Donations to Neighbor-to-Neighbor have the immediate impact of easing suffering in our community.”

The Reich challenge grant is in addition to the $101,850 Neighbor-to-Neighbor challenge grant that Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation Central Berkshire Fund announced in October, which will match $7 for every $1 raised by the 14,550 residents of seven Berkshire hilltowns to fund the program in those towns. To receive that grant, each town must raise $1 per resident up to its population size with a minimum of 10 gifts per town by December 21, 2009.

“We are about halfway there with the Central Berkshire Fund challenge,” said Dowley. “I’m delighted to announce that the towns of Becket, Peru and Windsor have made their matches. The countdown is on for Cummington, Dalton, Hinsdale and Washington with just two weeks left for residents in those towns to step forward.”

Neighbor-to-Neighbor provides emergency assistance for local residents who are in economic distress. The program makes small grants (generally around $500) to help those with overdue utilities, medical bills, short-term housing costs, and transportation problems. Checks are written to the vendor (landlord, utility company, pharmacy or mechanic) on behalf of the community member in need. The funds are not intended for long-term or ongoing assistance, but for strategic intervention to help achieve a measure of stability and avert further crises.

Neighbor-to-Neighbor is an expansion of Berkshire Taconic’s Emergency Relief Fund, which for more than 15 years worked with social service organizations and churches to help those in desperate need. The program now gives everyone in our region the opportunity to offer help to their neighbors. Neighbor-to-Neighbor is partnering with Berkshire Community Action Council (BCAC), a countywide social service agency, to administer this program. If you or someone you know needs emergency financial assistance, contact BCAC’s Wayne Cronnell at 413.445.4503 or wcronnell@bcainc.org.

To help Berkshire County meet its matching grant challenges, please send contributions to Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation (271 Main Street, Suite 3, Great Barrington, MA 01230-1972) earmarked for Neighbor-to-Neighbor or donate online here.

Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation builds stronger communities and improves the quality of life for all residents of Berkshire County, MA; Columbia County and northeast Dutchess County, NY; and northwest Litchfield County, CT. Thanks to its generous donors, in 2008 Berkshire Taconic distributed nearly $9 million in scholarships and grants for programs in the arts and education, health and human services, and environmental protection. Berkshire Taconic is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization.

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