Community Connections news release | Page 1 Of 4
News ReleaseContact:
Cathy Lewis LongDustin Stiver
The Sprout FundCommunity Connections
412.325.0646412.325.0646
CommunityConnectionsInvitesWestmorelandCounty to Join in
250th Anniversary Celebration in 2008
Creating $1 Million Fund to Encourage Citizens to
“Imagine What We Can Do Together”
PITTSBURGH, PA, July 9, 2007 – Community Connections, an initiative of Pittsburgh 250, invites neighborhoods, communities, civic organizations and individuals throughout the 14-county region of Southwestern Pennsylvania, including Westmoreland County, to propose exciting and meaningful projects and activities that they can undertake to help celebrate the region’s 250thanniversary.
On July 31th, 2007, Community Connections will conduct a graphically facilitated community brainstorming session from 6:00-8:30pmat the GreensburgGarden and CivicCenterlocated at 951 Old Salem Road, Greensburg,PA15601to encourage project ideas and applications. The event is being co-hosted by the Community Foundation of Westmoreland County and all interested individuals and organizations are welcome to attend.
Community Connections projects will support the broad theme of “Pride & Progress.” Projects will be divided into three classes – Regional, Grassroots, and Affiliated. Targeting $1 million in total grant funding administered by The Sprout Fund, the number of projects undertaken will depend on the ideas generated following today’s launch.
Regional Grants of up to $50,000 will go to civic or community groups whose project, event, or activity will affect larger populations or distinct groups. A decisionmaking panel representative of the entire region will decide who is to be awarded Regional Project Grants.
Grassroots Grants of up to $5,000 will go to communities, civic groups or individuals whose project, event, or activity affects citizens in a single county or community. Decisionmaking panels of local leaders in each county will decide who will receive Grassroots Project Grants.
Additionally, a third class of Affiliated Projects will be endorsed and promoted as part of Community Connections, but will not receive monetary support. These ideas will run in conjunction with regional and grassroots projects while supporting the vision of Community Connections.
The deadline for applying is September 14, 2007. Groups and individuals interested in applying for grant funding can do so by simply visiting the website and downloading the application.
Community Connections is open to individuals and organizations from the 14-county Southwestern Pennsylvania region, which includes Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, Washington and Westmoreland counties.
In October and November 2007, using objective criteria focused on civic engagement, a nominated panel of community leaders will select and announce the recipients of the grant funding. Throughout 2008, the chosen organizations will execute their projects with the assistance of Community Connections. Finally, in spring 2009, Community Connections will professionally document the success of the program by outlining how projects affected communities and residents throughout the region.
“We hope to foster civic engagement among citizens in the 14 counties, strengthen our regional identity, and commemorate the 250thanniversary of our proud region,” said George Miles, president and chief executive officer of WQED Multimedia and a co-chair of the more than 40-member Community Connections Committee. “We hope this sense of civic pride will persist far beyond the celebrations in 2008. The legacy of Community Connections will be a set of significant, memorable activities that can be directly attributed to this moment in history.”
About Pittsburgh 250 Community Connections:
Community Connections is a cooperative effort between The Sprout Fund, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit organization with extensive experience in supporting and managing community-based projects; the Pittsburgh 250 Community Connections Committee, a 40-member regional advisory group chaired by George Miles of WQED Multimedia, Aradhna Dhanda of Leadership Pittsburgh Inc., and Cathy Lewis Long of The Sprout Fund; and, Pittsburgh 250, Inc., a supporting organization of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the lead agency implementing and coordinating events and activities related to the region’s 250thanniversary celebration. Lead support for the first phases of Pittsburgh 250 Community Connections is generously provided by the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.
To learn more about the ongoing work of Community Connections and keep up-to-date with the
latest news and information about Pittsburgh 250, visit or contact Dustin Stiver, Community Connections Program Coordinator, at (412) 325-0646.
About The Sprout Fund:
The Sprout Fund, a project of The Tides Center (PA), is a nonprofit organization supporting innovative ideas and grassroots community projects that are catalyzing change in Pittsburgh. Founded in 2001, Sprout is designed to facilitate community-led solutions to regional challenges and supports efforts to create a thriving, progressive, and culturally diverse region. With strong working relationships to many community organizations and regional stakeholders, The Sprout Fund is one of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s leading agencies on issues related to civic engagement, talent attraction and retention, public art, and catalytic small-scale funding.
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