Charity

Sign Up for the 2020 Watertown Town-Wide Spelling Bee

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The 10th annual Watertown Town-wide Spelling Bee is coming up and teams can sign up now. This year’s spelling bee will be on Sunday, March 29 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and it will be held at the Hosmer Elementary School Auditorium. The money raise during the spelling bee will go to help the Watertown Public Schools. The spelling be is open to all Watertown elementary school students in grades 1 through 5. To register team of three students costs $60, and T-shirts are available for $15.

Schools

See Which Groups Got Education Grants from the Watertown Community Foundation

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The Watertown Community Foundation announced it has awarded grants totaling $34,385 to initiatives supporting Watertown Public Schools. Grantees were notified this week just before the end of the 2019 school year. Grants will be implemented in spring of 2020 and or fall of 2020. 

The funds distributed through the School Based Grant Program focus on solely on Watertown’s public schools to support activities that improve instruction and learning.  

2019-2020 Education Grants  

21 School based grants totaling $34,385 were given for: 

WHS College VisitsWHS Robotics TeamWHS SPEAK ProgramWHS WCAMP – Watertown College Application Mentoring ProgramWHS/WMS/General Public Undocumented and Unafraid: Lessons from a DreamerWHS/District Musical Instrument Purchase and Repair ProgramWMS One School One BookWMS Grade 8 Dynamic Earth Heat Flow Traveling Program through Museum of ScienceWMS Garden/ Nature Club Spring /Fall 2020WMS 7th Grade Thematic Social StudiesWMS 3Doodle Modeling in Middle School Technology Education and EngineeringLowell -Grade 1 – Discovery Museum Traveling Science Workshop -SoundCunniff- Grade 5 – 10 Oculus Go Devices for Virtual Field Trips and Immersive EducationLowell PreK -5-Len Cabral Storytelling AssemblyLowell- K -Force and Motion Workshop presented by the Discovery MuseumCunniff ESL -After-School Enrichment Activities for ESL StudentsDistrict Grade 3- Gore PlaceDistrict PreK-5 – Purchase of the book One World, One Day, by Barbara KerleDistrict Pre-K- Districtwide Pre-K Science EnrichmentHosmer Gr. 5- The Courage Campaign: Movement & Self-Discovery WorkshopHosmer – International Week 2020

For questions, please contact Jan Singer at jan.singer@watertownfoundation.org.  

The Watertown Community Foundation, a public, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, works to build and sustain a vibrant, close-knit community in Watertown – now, and for future generations. To accomplish this, WCF raises funds from individuals, families, businesses, and foundations; awards grants to nonprofits and community projects; and builds networks of donors, grantees, program participants, and stakeholders. 

WCF Board of Directors 

David Siegel and Darshna Varia, Co-Presidents; Robert Airasian; Albrik Avanessian; Emily Barclay; Eleanor Donato; William B. Ford; Ashley Morris; Mary Ann Mulligan; Antonia O’Hara; Anthony Paolillo; Maria Panaggio-Phillips; Lora Sabin; Robert Shay; Elaina Themistos; Lauren Coughlin Unsworth; and Kathryn White.

Charity

Watertown Community Foundation Awards $14.5K in Health Grants

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The Watertown Community Foundation (WCF) is pleased to announce the awarding of the Fall 2019 Healthy Watertown Grants.  A total of $14,500 will be distributed in support of organizations that work to create new or existing programs to keep our community healthy.    

Five of this year’s grantees address the growing challenge of food insecurity among all ages within our community.  These include support of preschoolers and their families with Communities United: Cooking with Kids and Families Program, helping the Watertown Boys and Girls Club provide Healthy Lunch and Snacks during School Vacations, a Summer Supper Club for Seniors and funds for the SNAP Match Program at the Watertown Farmers Market. 

Grantees include: 

Watertown Police Free Community Narcan Program  

Communities United: Cooking with Kids and Families  

Boys and Girls Club – School Vacation Healthy Lunch and Snack Program  

Watertown for All Ages: Travel Resources for Older Residents  

Watertown Council on Aging: Summer Supper Club for Seniors 

Watertown Council on Aging: Food Pantry New Shelving 

Zen Art II For Mind-Body Wellness for Seniors  

Watertown Farmers Market SNAP Match Program  

W.A.T.E.R  Erase the Stigma: Recovery is Possible (Education) Event 

For questions, please contact Jan Singer at jan.singer@watertownfoundation.org.   

The Watertown Community Foundation works to build and sustain a vibrant, close-knit community in Watertown – now, and for future generations. To accomplish this, WCF raises funds from people and partner institutions, awards grants to non-profits and community projects, and builds networks of donors, grantees, program participants and stakeholders. 

Since its inception in 2003, WCF has awarded over $1,000,000 in grants to programs and organizations serving Watertown.  

WCF Board of Directors  

David Siegel and Darshna Varia, Co-Presidents; Robert Airasian; Albrik Avanessian; Emily Barclay;  Lauren Coughlin Unsworth; Eleanor Donato; William B. Ford; Antonia O’Hara; Maria Panaggio-Phillips; Ashley Morris; Mary Ann Mulligan; Tony Paolillo; Lora Sabin; Robert Shay;  Elaina Themistos; and Kathryn White. 

Charity

See How to Donate to Watertown Organizations on #GivingTuesday

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Tuesday, Dec. 3 is Giving Tuesday, and if you would like to give locally, here are a few opportunities. The following came from the donation information provided by these Watertown-based groups:

Watertown Community Foundation

There is no better way to see the true impact of your donation than to give where you live. We hope you’ll think of the Watertown Community Foundation on #GivingTuesday. Make a local impact every single day of the year.

Around Town

Watertown Food Drive Provided Food for Hundreds of Residents

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The Watertown Community Foundation’s food drive held in October brought in hundreds of bags of donation. Here are just some of them. A food drive organized by the Watertown Community Foundation this October, in conjunction with Watertown schools and businesses provided hundreds of bags of food for the two local food pantries. The directors of the food pantries thanked the organizers and people who donated to the drive. “Just want to say that we are so grateful for everyone’s help, we have very well stocked shelves which is wonderful with winter coming,” said Beverly Concannon, director of the St.

Around Town

Applications Available for 2019 Watertown Healthy Grants

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The Watertown Community Foundation (WCF) announces the release of the Fall 2019 Healthy Watertown Grants to support organizations that work to create new or existing programs to keep our community healthy. A total of $10,000 will be distributed through these health grants. Past Healthy Grant awardees have included: Local food pantries; nutrition and meal programs for school age children and seniors; programs and services fostering healthy aging; mental health first aid training for first responders; programs designed to combat the opioid crisis and provide services and supports for individuals and families struggling with substance use disorders; and health-related programs for infants and their families. Eligible organizations may apply for a maximum of $2500. The average amount awarded will range from $500 to $2500.

Around Town

Watertown Community Foundation Taking Applications for Education Grants

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The following announcement came from the Watertown Community Foundation:

The Watertown Community Foundation (WCF) has merged with the Watertown Education Foundation (WEF) and announces the release of the Fall 2018 School Program Grants. This program focuses solely on Watertown’s public schools and seeks to support activities that improve instruction and learning. 

The application form is available online. Grant requests of up to $2,500 will be considered, though the average amount awarded will likely range from $500 to $1,000. Where partnerships of two or more schools or organizations are involved an award of up to $5,000 will be considered. A total of $35.000 will be awarded.

Around Town

October Drive Collecting Items for Food Pantries in Watertown

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Items collected for the Watertown Community Foundation’s food drive in January. The Foundation is organizing another one in the month of October. The Watertown Community Foundation will once again organize a food drive to collect items for the two food pantries in town at a time when donations are typically down. Items are being collected at the Watertown Public Schools, as well as the Watertown Police Station and Watertown Free Public Library and several local businesses. As always, items will also be accepted at the Watertown Food Pantry (80 Mt.