Marisol Valentin, McAuley Ministries executive director
Grants support advocacy, capacity building, community development, education, and health and wellness initiatives
McAuley Ministries, Pittsburgh Mercy’s grant-making foundation, awarded in the final quarter of 2022 13 grants totaling over $1.6 million to support advocacy, capacity building, community development, education, and health and wellness initiatives in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, Uptown, and West Oakland communities, the New Pittsburgh Courier has learned.
Since its founding by the Pittsburgh Sisters of Mercy in 2008, McAuley Ministries has awarded 930 grants and community support totaling $52.6 million to nonprofit organizations that advance its grant-making priorities. The West Oakland-based, grant-making foundation awards on average $3.5 million in grants annually, making it one of the region’s largest philanthropic foundations.
Grouped by grant-making priorities, the recipients of the most recent grants are as follows.
Advocacy
– Black Political Empowerment Project (B-PEP): $51,000 for a third year of funding for the Get-Out-the-Vote project first funded by McAuley Ministries in 2020. The project focuses on voter engagement, education, participation, and turn-out in Pittsburgh’s two majority-minority County districts—District 6, which covers the Hill District, Uptown, and parts of West Oakland—and District 9, which covers Homewood and the East End.
Capacity Building
– Hello Neighbor: $20,400 for operating support to assist all areas of programming that serve the Hill District, Uptown, West Oakland, and beyond. This area is home to seven recently resettled families and several mentee families. Their program provides Smart Start participants with access to maternal care and supports students in its Study Buddy virtual tutoring program.
– Womanspace-East Inc.: $500,000 to complete a series of urgent facility capital improvements including replacement of the HVAC system in the family apartment, common space, and office areas of the building; window replacements; interior painting; exterior repairs including historic entry stairs for safe building access; and enhanced supportive services programming to aid in its efforts to provide holistic care for families in need of emergency shelter.
Community Development
– Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Pittsburgh Inc: $102,000 to support St. Joseph House of Hospitality which serves men over 50 who have been homeless or are currently at risk of homelessness. The program provides single room occupancy in private secure rooms, year-round food service, and case management services for residents. The grant will support the case management function.
Disaster Response
– American National Red Cross: $10,000 emergency grant in response to flood victims in Jackson, Miss., and from Hurricane Ian.
– Brother’s Brother Foundation: $10,000 to support victims of Hurricane Fiona and Hurricane Ian.
– Roman Catholic Bishop of Owensboro: $10,000 in response to flooding in Eastern Kentucky.
Education
– Early Excellence Project: $507,200 to support the launch of the Margaret Washington Early Learning Center (MWELC) in the Hill District. The Center will serve households with infants to children up to age 12, in the Hill District, Uptown, and West Oakland, with an emphasis on families who are surviving poverty and those who have been historically marginalized.
– Ozanam Inc.: $61,200 to continue their Legacy Hill Project which inspires children and youth through culturally specific frameworks capitalizing to excel and achieve through innovative educational experiences that embrace STEM and digital literacy and prepare students with 21st century learning skills.
– Strong Women, Strong Girls Inc.: $20,400 to support high-quality mentorship programs in collaboration with local schools, community centers, and higher educational institutions. Through the partnership with McAuley Ministries, SWSG has been providing out-of-school time enrichment and mentoring to 30 girls at four program sites in the Hill District.
Health & Wellness
– 412 Food Rescue Inc.: $51,000 to support the distribution of food to the Hill District, Uptown, and West Oakland communities. During the last grant cycle, it expanded from 26 to 35 partners and more than tripled its home delivery services from 12 to 42 households.
– Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank: $51,000 in financial support of its general operations. It provides food and technical assistance to 14-20 organizations in McAuley Ministries’ focus neighborhoods.
– Pittsburgh Mercy: $267,507 over three years to support the opening of a second comprehensive health center to serve the needs of vulnerable individuals who are experiencing homelessness in the Pittsburgh region. The new, planned 3,500 square feet clinic, which will be located at Bethlehem Haven at 905 Watson Street in Uptown, Pittsburgh, will include two physical examination rooms, three therapy rooms, and one room for dental services. This new space will be operated by Pittsburgh Mercy and will offer much-needed behavioral health, physical health, and dental health services to better address the health disparities that exist within this vulnerable population.
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