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20th Anniversary Grant Finalists

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We asked for your votes, and you cast them.
More than 24,800 of them!

Thanks for voting for your favorite agencies in our 20th Anniversary Grant Competition! We are now in the process of tabulating the final results. The three winning agencies will be announced at our anniversary celebration and conference on Tuesday, October 3.

Be sure to stop by this page that afternoon to find out who they are!

Education for Economic Success

Ädelbrook, Inc.

Area of Focus: Education for Economic Success
Proposal summary: Ädelbrook's priority is to increase future economic success for young people with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Developmental Disabilities through state-of-the-art STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) education. Our project wish is to strengthen our STEAM curriculum by creating Innovation Labs in our Cromwell and Middletown schools. Our vision is that the labs will ignite and excite a passion for education in our young people, and provide future-focused vocational and job training. Using the lab’s graphics and 3D capabilities, student teams will create tangible items to be used or sold in The Barkery, our educational job training store; a win-win situation. Our 'secret sauce' is that we hire only the most motivated, qualified, positive and creative educators to work with our young people.
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New Haven Works, Inc.

Area of Focus: Education for Economic Success
Proposal summary: New Haven Works is a partnership between government, community, labor and the private sector to strengthen the middle class in New Haven and improve economic stability in all communities by providing employers access to a qualified, pre-screened workforce and connecting New Haven residents to good jobs. This Spring, New Haven Works placed its 1,000th member into a job. With support from the Liberty Bank Foundation, we can address the high demand for our services by moving our intake process online, saving time for participants and ultimately serving more residents. We can also update our computer hardware and software to meet our participants’ needs. With the Liberty Bank Foundation’s help, we can set our sights on helping the next 1,000 New Haven residents obtain good jobs with local employers.
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Windham Regional Community Council, Inc.

Area of Focus: Education for Economic Success
Proposal summary: The Windham “Community Academy” builds the capacity of the Windham Youth CORE, GROW Windham’s award-winning high-school workforce and leadership development program, to reach more youth and have a deeper impact on participants. This proposal will transform the program from one that serves youth to one that is youth-led, providing participants steady employment and opportunities to grow into positions of increased responsibility and independence. Supported by professional mentors, program staff, and university interns, youth participants develop enterprises that promote access to healthy food in Windham, one of Connecticut’s most under-resourced communities. Through this process, they build career portfolios, gain community advocacy skills, and earn leadership certificates that prepare them to build and teach a network of their peers.
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Affordable and Supportive Housing

Capital for Change

Area of Focus: Affordable and Supportive Housing
Proposal summary: Capital for Change is a nonprofit CDFI that provides flexible financing and offers technical assistance to borrowers to promote affordable housing, energy efficiency, the success of non-profit organizations and small businesses. This project will advance our Socially Responsible Investor program through which C4C invites investments from individuals, foundations, faith-based groups and nonprofit organizations aligned with its values. This grant will help leverage the resources necessary to launch a state-wide multi-media outreach campaign that will consist of the engagement of a professional advertising firm to create a formal program marketing plan, development of new print and online materials, and to help us promote a seminar series with speakers who are experts in community development.
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Columbus House, Inc.

Area of Focus: Affordable and Supportive Housing
Proposal summary: For 35 years, Columbus House has served people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless by providing shelter and housing, and by fostering their personal growth and independence. Over the next five years, in partnership with Yale School of Architecture, five modularly-constructed duplexes will be designed and built (one per year at $200,000 each) which Columbus House will own in order to house and reintegrate into their New Haven community those experiencing homelessness. By utilizing principles of affordability, sustainability and replicability, this partnership can forever change how academia, industry and homeless services agencies address the severe lack of affordable housing in Connecticut. A Liberty Bank Foundation anniversary grant will help lay the foundation for this first home and help leverage additional funding.
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Middlesex Habitat for Humanity

Area of Focus: Affordable and Supportive Housing
Proposal summary: An increase in staff will provide an environment of consistency and we have shown when we can surround ourselves with people who share a passion around a common purpose, we can accomplish great things. We aren’t in a position to take this leap on our own—that’s why this grant is such an opportunity for us—it allows us to take the next step. We will continually monitor and measure the impact of the new position and if the result is impactful we will continue with the position. Increasing our capacity in the ReStore will continue to prove that you don’t have to lift a hammer to help us build a house.
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Basic Needs

Connecticut Veterans Legal Center

Area of Focus: Basic Needs (such as shelter and food)
Proposal summary: CVLC needs a database. CVLC's Director of Operations, Cindy Johnson, built our current database herself using free online software. CVLC has served almost 2,000 veterans since Cindy built this system and while it has served us well for many years, it is about to reach maximum capacity. New software is necessary to continue to meet the legal needs of CT's veterans. New legal casework software will: (1) Bring CVLC’s capabilities on par with peer legal service provider organizations, (2) Increase CVLC’s ability to track and analyze legal work and case outcomes, (3) Allow for enhanced integration between CVCL’s document management, client communications, time tracking, and legal data, and (4) Increase CVLC’s efficiency through use of templates for client communication letters and legal-issue-specific information tracking.
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Valley United Way

Area of Focus: Basic Needs (such as shelter and food)
Proposal summary: Join VUW in partnership to empower the food insecure families/individuals of Ansonia and Derby CT. We developed and mastermind impactful programs that address the rising need for food security including Harvest House, Food Security Task Force, and the Grow Your Own (GYO) Neighborhood Garden Program. We seek to capitalize on the momentum of the GYO Program by adding more raised gardens, installing fencing, building tool sheds, and adding more educational/service opportunities. Recent data indicates that: 50-67% of students receive free and reduced lunch, 786 Households have no vehicle to get to the food pantries, and 42% of households receive SNAP benefits. We are winning the fight to eliminate food insecurity in these neighborhoods, we anxiously await partnering with Liberty Bank.
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Windham Region No Freeze Project

Area of Focus: Basic Needs (such as shelter and food)
Proposal summary: The Northeast Youth Engagement Team would like to create a street outreach team to engage and provide information for young people in our region. Our target population is youth between the ages of 18-24 who are experiencing housing instability or homelessness. This is our first step in addressing the state's goal to end youth and family homelessness by the end of the year 2020. The street team will set up regularly in places where youth frequent. They will provide food items, snacks, toiletries, phone cards, bus passes, gift cards, and other necessary items in an effort to help youth connect or reconnect with families or services who can help them gain access to stable housing.
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Runners Up

Picking just 9 finalists out of 82 videos was a tough job! We wanted to give you a chance to see all of the great projects our partners sent to us—so be sure to visit the runners up below. And if you like what you see, you can click the button to donate now!

Education for Economic Success

Amity Teen Center
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Boys & Girls Club of Bristol Family Center
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Capitol Region Education Council
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Children's Community School
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Christian Community Action, Inc.
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Community Action Agency of New Haven
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Consolidated School District of New Britain
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EASTCONN
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Eastern Connecticut State University
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Eastern Connecticut Workforce Investment Board / Eastern Advanced Manufacturing Alliance
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Gateway Community College Foundation, Inc.
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Higher Edge
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Jumpstart for Young Children, Inc.
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LEAP
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Literacy Volunteers of Central CT
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Middlesex Community College Foundation, Inc.
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Middletown Adult Education Even Start Program
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Middletown High School
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Music Haven
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Neighborhood Music School
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New England Science & Sailing Foundation
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New Haven Reads
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North End Action Team (NEAT)
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Northern Middlesex YMCA
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Norwich Public Schools
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Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters
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Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater
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Our Piece of the Pie, Inc.
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Reach Out and Read, Inc.
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Ryan Woods Autism Foundation
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School of Education & Professional Studies at Central Connecticut State University
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Squash Haven
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The Riverfront Children's Center
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Three Rivers College Foundation
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United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut
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United Way of Meriden and Wallingford
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United Way of West Central Connecticut
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Valley Shore YMCA
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WECARE
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Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History
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Affordable and Supportive Housing

Bethsaida Community, Inc.
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Habitat for Humanity of Eastern Connecticut
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HOPE Partnership
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Housing Development Fund
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Liberty Community Services
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Mystic Area Shelter & Hospitality, Inc. (MASH)
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Neighborhood Housing Services of Waterbury
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Partnership for Strong Communities
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Rebuilding Together New Britain
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St. Vincent DePaul Mission of Bristol, Inc.
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TEAM, Inc.
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The Village for Families & Children
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Basic Needs

Access Community Action Agency
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Catholic Charities, Diocese of Norwich, Inc.
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Community Soup Kitchen
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Friendship Service Center, Inc.
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Gilead Community Services, Inc.
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IRIS—Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services
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Martin House, Inc.
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Meriden Wallingford Chrysalis
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Naugatuck Valley Community College
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New Horizons
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New London Homeless Hospitality Center
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Norwich Human Services
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Operation Fuel, Inc.
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Plainville Community Food Pantry
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Safe Futures, Inc.
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St. Vincent de Paul Middletown
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Thames River Community Service, Inc.
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United Community and Family Services
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United Way of Greater New Haven
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United Way of Greater Waterbury
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Windham Area Interfaith Ministry
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