Our Impact
At New Canaan Community Foundation, we measure success in numerous ways: in the number of lives we touch, in the reach of our grants, in the quality of programs we support, and more.
Learn more about our work:
Learn about our other programs:
Check out our most recent Annual Report!
GRANTMAKING
NCCF’s grant investments support programs, operating, partnerships, capital campaigns, and expanding the capacity of nonprofits in New Canaan and in our neighboring communities.
92
local nonprofits
with the help of
$712,700
distributed in grants to
2023 Snapshot:
100+
community volunteers
Community leadership is core to NCCF’s work.
The Foundation is uniquely positioned to build cross-sector partnerships, has deep expertise on local issues, and a commitment to improving the community. As an institution, we can problem solve in ways that bring people and organizations together – for impact that could not be accomplished alone. We bring resources to bear, in large part through our grantmaking, but also human capital, relationships, and influence to move the needle on important issues.
Community leadership is a tradition of local community foundations. In recent years, NCCF’s community leadership has:
elevated behavioral health efforts in our community
led philanthropic response to the COVID-19 pandemic, both in town and regionally
partnered and advised local government on the investment of federal ARPA dollars in our community
COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP
“The community foundation is a community partner that creates a better future for all by pursuing the community's greatest opportunities and addressing the most critical challenges, inclusively uniting people, institutions and resources from throughout the community, and producing significant, widely shared and lasting results”
- Council on Foundations, Framework for Community Leadership by a Community Foundation
The Community Behavioral Health Fund
Launched in spring of 2023, the Community Behavioral Health Fund is the latest in the Foundation’s work on behavioral health issues in our community.
The Fund builds on the Foundation’s previous 5 years of work in this space, and is envisioned as a multiyear initiative with the initial goal of investing $500,000 over the next 5 years of this work.
The Community Behavioral Health Fund is a community-based and volunteer-led fund with a multi-year focus on addressing both the short-term and long-term behavioral health in New Canaan and surrounding communities. The fund aims to mobilize resources for continued access to services, decrease stigma, improve data tracking, forge partnerships across sectors, advocate for policies and funding, and document learning. The New Canaan Community Foundation will be a vehicle to bring together information from across the community and the behavioral health system, addressing issues in a way that is smart for the whole ecosystem.
TOUCH A LIFE FUND
Did you know that staff from local agencies, schools and churches can request confidential emergency financial assistance for New Canaan residents to help pay for essential needs? The Touch A Life program is a unique local resource for New Canaan residents who need financial help making ends meet. Professional staff from local social service agencies, schools, and churches can request emergency financial assistance on behalf of residents. Donations to this fund come from New Canaan residents who want to help their neighbors in need.
All requests are kept strictly confidential, and all payments are made directly to vendors. Eligible expenses include: rent, utilities, car repairs, summer school, school supplies, food, and other household necessities, child care, summer camp when used as child care, clothing, funeral expenses, medical bills, and home repairs. Typical grants to help individuals do not exceed $500 and payments will usually be made within a few business days.
FY23 Snapshot
NCCF fulfilled 38 requests for emergency financial assistance totaling over $13,000. Take a look at the needs we saw in our community:
In addition to the individualized support offered by Touch A Life, NCCF made a $20,000 grant in FY23 to pilot a partnership with New Canaan Public Schools, providing extra meals and snacks to students on Free and Reduced-Price Meals.