2021 April Mission Society Grant Summaries
Each year, the St. Elizabeth Mission Society provides grants for programs and projects that are in line with the mission, vision and direction of the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany. A Franciscan Sister of Allegany (FSA) Member or Associate must be directly affiliated and actively engaged in the program or project. The maximum grant award is $5,000 (USD).
Funded grants are projects that provide service to those who are poor and promote self-sufficiency and systemic change, including food, clothing, shelter needs, medical assistance, educational programs and supplies as well as capital improvements and equipment. An accountability report is due at the conclusion of the grant cycle.
Printable 2021 April Grant Summaries – PDF
“Brotherhood in Christ” Welcoming & Overcoming – Franciscan Sisters of Allegany – Region – Brazil – AFIA Anápolis, GO
$4,500.00 Sr. Maria Isa Batista, OSF
This project has the purpose of serving and supporting families and individuals of low-income with their basic needs. Many difficulties were presented during the Coivd-19 pandemic and the uncertainties that come with it. The Mission Society’s grant for AFIA provided financial relief for families in relation to the Pandemic: exams, tests, medical consultations, food baskets, etc., in order to lighten the uncertainties and provide aid and comfort during such a time.
RISE (Rental Initiative to Prevent Evictions) – Brunswick County Homeless Coalition – Ocean Isle Beach, NC
$4,500.00 Rita Canfield
The Brunswick County Homeless Coalition will, through use of a help-line and referrals, screen families and individuals to identify those who are in need of the most assistance. With the funding from the Mission Society, the Coalition will be able to provide 5 or more low-income and extremely low-income families with rental assistance to keep their existing rental housing.
Wash Station Project Completion – Canticle Farm, Inc. – Allegany, NY
$4,500.00 Sr. Melissa Scholl, OSF
Canticle Farm is a non-profit, Certified Naturally Grown (CNG), Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm and is a sponsored ministry of the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany. The Mission Society grant provided funds necessary for the upgrading of the wash station to ensure better food safety, year-round use, and production increases.
Assistance to People in an Emergency Situation – Covento Menino Jesus – Anapolis, GO, Brazil
$5,000.00 Sr. Marinêz Arantes da Silva
This program is not an established one, but rather one that has sprung up from the needs of the community. Through funding from the Mission Society, the Convent is able to provide financial relief for individuals and families who have been impacted by the pandemic: food, medical assistance, and basic goods.
Educational Inclusion & Citizenship – Covento Nossa Senhora D’Abidia – Anapolis, GO, Brazil
$4,500.00 Sr. Iosita de Freitas Campos
With the suspension of teaching in the face‐to‐face modality, access to online learning is essential. Through funding provided by the Mission Society, the Convento Nossa Senhora D’Abidia purchased 23 (twenty‐three) tablets for school work, with six (6) months of internet to provide schooling to individuals who were extremely affected by the pandemic, whose family income reaches levels of extreme poverty. The goal is that they, when having access to the activities of the Pedagogical Plan, reach the level of learning expected for the current academic year.
Health and Hygiene – Daystar Life Center – St. Petersburg, FL
$5,000.00 Sr. Marita Flynn, OSF
The Daystar Life Center, with funding provided by the Mission Society, is able to provide hygiene products, paper products, cleaning products, and prevention items to those in need. The Center anticipates serving approximately 7,500 households within this fiscal year and the grant funds provided will ensure that they are stocked with necessary items and have them available for those in need.
Sandwiches for the Homeless Ministry – Holy Cross Church – Springfield, MA
$5,000.00 Sr. Cindy Matthews, OSF
Sandwiches for the Homeless provides food (sandwiches/drinks), socks and underwear to 200 homeless individuals in Springfield, Mass. every Sunday. The ministry, which includes parishioners and interested groups, has been making 400 ham and turkey sandwiches every week since 2006 and began providing basic clothing in 2011. The Mission Society grant made it possible to purchase the necessary ingredients for sandwiches distributed weekly to our homeless brothers and sisters in Springfield.
Water Harvesting & Sewage Management (WHSM)- Phase 2 – Immaculate Conception Convent – Kingston, JA
$4,500.00 Sr. Trinita Solneck, OSF
After previous funding enable the Convent to complete Phase one of the project, they moved on to ensure a reliable water supply for the premises and to replace the antiquated sewerage system currently serving the premises with a safe, self-sustaining, environmentally responsible system to reduce demand on municipal water. Funding from the Mission Society was used to complete Phase two: reduce demand, provide self-sufficient and environmentally responsible system, and minimize assessments levied against the municipal sewer system.
Educational & Career Services – St. Francis Community Center, LBICC – Long Beach Twp., NJ
$2,250.00 Edna Suckow
The St. Francis Community Center has provided social service programs for the past 45 years with the goal of meeting the needs of the Ocean County residents. The Educational and Career Services provides adult education and skills to residents who are in need of completing their high school diploma. The Mission Society grant enabled the Center to enhance their computer lab as well as provide funding to students who need financial support to pay for the equivalency test.
Human Concerns- Homeless Prevention – St. Francis Community Center, LBICC – Long Beach Twp., NJ
$2,250.00 Madeline Foley
The Homelessness Prevention Program provides Southern Ocean County residents with an opportunity to identify services to resolve their housing needs. Along with housing assistance, all clients are offered food assistance as well through the food pantry. With the monies from the Mission Society, the St. Francis Community Center will be able to provide four households with rental assistance, with increased numbers of clients due to Covid-19.
Transforming Lives Through Education – St. Francis Educational Center – Palmas, TO, Brazil
$4,500.00 Sr. Maria Helena dos Santos, OSF
The Support Program aims to assist those who are in situations of social vulnerability with assistance aimed at donating scholarships to low-income children and adolescents, which provides them with the necessary conditions for them to have an equal and quality education. Through the grant provided by the Mission Society, the Project was able to provide textbooks, supplies, and food for students (and families) enrolled at CESFA.
Tuition Scholarship Program – St. Gianna’s Center for Women’s Health & Fertility Care – St. Petersburg, FL
$4,500.00 Sr. Pat Shirley, OSF
St. Gianna’s Center for Women’s Health and FertilityCare and have been supporting the promotion of FertilityCare since 2005. The Tuition Assistance Scholarship exists to assist students with tuition costs of a 13 month accredited education program to become FertilityCare Practitioners. This program is the only education program currently available in the Southeastern United States, which is taught in two phases The Mission Society’s grant provided funds for scholarships for 2 students, including tuition, books and supplies, and classroom fees and teaching supplies.
Laptop Procurement for Teachers – St. Joseph’s Infant School – Kingston, JA
$4,500.00 Sr. Teresita DeSouza, OSF
With the Covid-19 Pandemic, many difficulties were presented to ensure that education continued with distance learning. Through the Mission Society grant, St. Joseph’s Infant School was able to provide 7 laptops to teachers to enable distance learning and the continuation of all programs at the institution. This provided hope and security during a large rise in unemployment concerns that were affecting those in Jamaica during such an unprecedented time that the coronavirus brought.
Creating Pathways for Liberation through Education in Bristol Co. MA – United Interfaith Action of Southeast MA (UIA) – Falls River, MA
$4,500.00 Sr. Pat Shirley, OSF
Interfaith Action is a faith-based community improvement organization that seeks to provide and promote a thriving community amidst economic decline. The Mission Society’s funding was used to purchase equipment and supplies for the community improvement program, to help engage grassroot leaders from mid to low income communities to engage and build relationships, identify common concerns among those that live within that community, to develop power for the people, and to push for changes in law and policies to ensure a better life. Funding also provided a relief fund for those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Back to Grants
