Greater Rochester Community Health Foundation announces $250,000 in grants

The Greater Rochester Community Health Foundation’s Board of Directors has announced $250,000 in grants to 20 nonprofits working to improve the health and well-being of people in Strafford County.

“The Greater Rochester Community Health Foundation is proud to be able to support the great work of these organizations that are providing such a range of services and supports to the community,” said Meena Gyawali, senior program officer for the GRCHF.

The following organizations each received grants of $25,000 to provide maternal, mental and/or dental health services to residents of Strafford County:

Community Action Partnership of Strafford County (CAPSC), Dover, $25,000

Dover Mental Health Alliance, Dover, $25,000

Greater Seacoast Community Health, Portsmouth, $25,000

Waypoint, Manchester (which operates sites in Dover and Rochester), $25,000

In addition, unrestricted grants for operating support were awarded from the GRCHF Small Grants Program to the following organizations for work addressing access to care issues for people in Strafford County:

Behavioral Health & Development Services of Strafford County (d/b/a Community Partners), Dover, $10,000

Cornerstone VNA, Rochester, $10,000

Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation (COAST), Dover, $10,000

Dover Children’s Home, Dover, $10,000

Gather, Portsmouth, $10,000

Great Bay Services, Dover, $10,000

Haven, Portsmouth, $10,000

Homeless Center for Strafford County, Rochester, $10,000

Reproductive Freedom Fund of New Hampshire, Dover, $10,000

SHARE Fund, Rochester, $10,000

SOS Recovery Community Organization, Rochester, $10,000

Strafford Nutrition & Meals on Wheels, Somersworth, $10,000

Triangle Club, Dover, $10,000

Tri-City Consumers’ Action Co-Operative (Infinity Peer Support), Rochester, $10,000

Vouchers for Veterans, Rochester, $7,500

Zebra Crossings, Dover, $2,500

Access to care was identified as a priority for the foundation by initial research of community needs assessments from the major healthcare providers in the region.

GRCHF’s mission is to improve the health and well-being and reduce the burden of illness of people residing in Strafford County and surrounding communities. GRCHF does this work by awarding grants, making program-related investments, and providing other financial assistance to health and social service programs, organizations and projects that benefit the community.

GRCHF was created in 2021 with proceeds from the sale of the nonprofit Frisbie Memorial Hospital. GRCHF is a “supporting organization” of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, drawing on the Charitable Foundation’s community knowledge and financial and investment expertise to meet its mission.

The GRCHF Board of Directors includes (in alphabetical order): Betsey Andrews Parker, CEO of the Community Action Partnership of Strafford County, chair; Jennifer Gullison, RN, vice president of operations at Cornerstone VNA in Rochester; Brian Hughes, president and CEO of Holy Rosary Credit Union (HRCU) in Rochester; Sandra Jalbert, community volunteer from Rollinsford; Kerrie Landry, director of finance and accounting at Living Innovations in Rochester; Brittany Potvin, community health worker, Strafford County Public Health Network in Milton; Raude Raychel, founder and president of the Indonesian Community Connect in Somersworth; and Kyle Repucci, superintendent of schools, Rochester School Department.

To learn more about the Greater Rochester Community Health Foundation and grantmaking opportunities, please visit www.nhcf.org/GRCHF.