The Emerging Philanthropist Program (EPP), a partnership between The Foundation for Enhancing Communities (TFEC) and Harrisburg Young Professionals (HYP) awarded the YWCA Greater Harrisburg a $5,000 grant for their YouthBuild program.
“We are truly proud of the Emerging Philanthropist Program and the young adults in the 2015 class,” said TFEC President and CEO Janice R. Black. “These young adults have worked diligently to identify a community need and through this experience they have grown in knowledge and experience on how instrumental philanthropy can be in making our community a better place.”
The YWCA functions as the applicant for a coalition of community agencies which operates the Center for Employment, Education and Entrepreneurial Development (CEEED). In this collaboration, the YWCA also operates the YouthBuild project, which provides training in construction through Harrisburg Area Community College and GED attainment for young adult ages, 18 -24, who didn’t attain their high school diploma.
“The YouthBuild Program provides young adults with the tools to overcome obstacles and create new life changing opportunities,” noted YWCA Greater Harrisburg President and CEO Mary Quinn. “By constructing homes in their own low-income neighborhoods, they become invested stakeholders and productive citizens, which benefit the community as a whole. Through collaborations and financial support like this, we are able to strengthen the program and further our mission of empowerment.”
EPP presents the $5,000 check to YWCA Youthbuild
YWCA YouthBuild was selected by the 2015 EPP class after an extensive process which included identifying an area that was of the most need in the local Harrisburg community. The EPP class decided that the recipient nonprofit organization must provide programs that work to break the cycle of poverty and increase self-sufficiency in teens and young adults.
“The Emerging Philanthropist Program is a great way for our members at HYP to learn and develop the art of philanthropy, as well as financially contribute to a nonprofit in the area,” said HYP Executive Director Derek Whitesel. “This year’s class of 14 young professionals committed to an entire year of learning how to give back and make our community a better place through conducting interviews, site visits, and more in order to find a program that they felt would be able to help break the cycle of poverty. YouthBuild is very deserving of the grant and this program will further enhance the community by helping other young adults succeed.”
After a competitive grantmaking process involving the review of six applications, interviews and site visits to the finalist organizations, the 2015 EPP class selected YWCA as their awardee.
TFEC and HYP have partnered together to provide an opportunity for emerging leaders in the Harrisburg community to become actively engaged with the power of philanthropy.
Applications are now available online at www.tfec.org for the 2016 Emerging Philanthropist Program class; limit of 20 individuals for the 2016 class and must be a member of the Harrisburg Young Professionals.
For more information about EPP, please visit www.tfec.org and selected “Emerging Philanthropist Program” located under the Initiatives tab.
