New York Community Trust Long Island awards $523,000 in grants to local nonprofits

Multiple nonprofit organizations from Elmont to Montauk were awarded $523,000 in grants from New York Community Trust Long Island, aimed at addressing housing insecurity, protecting the environment, and an array of other issues. 

The 19 grants range from $50,000 to develop a digital platform to provide mental health services for school­-aged students, to $15,000 for a mentoring program for the children of Belmont Racetrack's backstretch workers.  

The New York Community Trust was founded in New York City over 100 years ago to address community needs in the five boroughs, said David Okorn, vice president of the Trust's Long Island branch, based in Commack. In 1976, the organization expanded to Long Island and Westchester.

“Most of our work is really about improving the quality of life for all here on Long Island and really trying to support a healthier and more equitable region ... ,” Okorn said.

Among the Long Island recipients:

The Huntington Youth Bureau received a $23,000 grant to go toward its peer-led youth court established in 2001. The program is for students ages 13 to 18 who have either been “suspended from school or have committed their first misdemeanor crime and are in the process of probation,” according to the program’s profile on the town’s website.

Using the principles of restorative justice, a jury made up of the students’ peers considers the infraction and delivers a sanction.

“The youth court is a way to intervene early with their friends and peers to help them get back on track and prevent them from getting into more serious trouble,” Town Supervisor Ed Smyth said.

A $20,000 grant went to the Uniondale Community Land Trust, a nonprofit formed in 2010 aimed at supporting those in need of affordable housing. The money will go toward outreach and workshops on first-time homebuying, disaster preparedness and those transitioning from renting to being a homeowner, said Anestoria Shalkowski, the land trust’s president. Funds also will go toward supplementing the salary of a part-time staff member.

The Uniondale Community Land Trust also builds and buys affordable-housing units.

“We do quite a bit, so the money will help supplement things such as providing literature, photocopying,” said Anestoria Shalkowski, the organization's president. “It’s very helpful and will help us carry through and conduct our mission.”

Water quality a focus

Robyn Silvestri, executive director of Save the Great South Bay, said that group was awarded a $50,000 grant to fund a water quality monitoring program across the South Shore and to create an easy-to-understand report card for which the data collected during water monitoring is translated into a letter grade.

“A report card is something everyone can relate to,” Silvestri said. “Everyone knows from their report cards at school, a C is average, A is great, an F is ‘really needs help.’ We’re looking to establish this educational tool.”

The report card is expected to be released next spring.

Concerned Citizens of Montauk was awarded a $30,000 grant that will go toward its Save Montauk’s Waters campaign, which aims to educate and advocate regarding local water quality issues, the nonprofit's executive director, Kay Tyler, said.

The money will be spent in areas such as marketing and webinars on topics related to what’s happening in local waters, and how to apply for septic system grants.

“We are on a mission to educate and create awareness around water quality and how septic upgrades help clean our waters,” Tyler said.

A list of all 19 grants going to Long Island agencies can be found on the New York Community trust website, thenytrust.org.

The grants are paid for with legacy funds left to the organization; by donors who have established a charitable fund with the organization for specific issues or causes; or by those who give annually, Okorn said.

Grants are awarded three times a year. The next application deadline is in the beginning of August, Okorn said.