Local nonprofits, schools, and government agencies are invited to participate in a FREE electronic waste recycling event Wednesday, June 29 between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Hosted by United Way of Westchester and Putnam, Progressive Computing and Upcycle, the event will take place at the offices of United Way, located at 336 Central Park Ave. in White Plains. Appointments are required and can be scheduled online at uwwp.org/ewaste.

“The cost of disposing of old electronic equipment is burdensome for many of our partners,” said United Way of Westchester and Putnam CEO Tom Gabriel. “By offering this service to the community for free we are ensuring that the agencies can increase their capacities while also arranging for the secure and environmentally safe way of discarding the broken or antiquated equipment.”

Upcycle specialists will do the heavy-lifting and loading—participants are responsible for bringing old, broken, or retired equipment to the event.

To protect participants’ privacy, Upcycle will provide a blanket certificate of data destruction ensuring that each hard drive is wiped using a Department of Defense and HIPPA compliant software. Serialized or shredded destruction, however, requires additional fees. The following list of equipment will be accepted and recycled free of charge. If an item is not listed, call 973-575-5800 x 3500 with any questions.

Accepted Equipment:

-All Batteries

-Computers

-Copy Machines

-Cords, Cables, and Computer Accessories

- Fax Machines

-Hard Drives

-iPads

-Keyboards

-Laptops

-Medical and Testing Equipment

-Memory Cards

-Mice

-Modems

-Monitors (LCD only)

-Networking equipment

-Phones (cell and office)

-Printers

-Routers

-Scanners

-Servers

-Speakers

-Switches

-Tape Drives

-Toner Cartridge

-Video Cards

United Way of Westchester and Putnam is accepting applications for $38,000 in funding collectively available through Phase 39 and Phase ARPA-R of the Emergency Food and Shelter Funds from the Local Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) Board in Putnam County. This program provides federal funding, which helps to extend currently available services for the hungry and homeless. 

“Housing and food insecurity still plague many residents in Putnam County,” said United Way President and CEO Tom Gabriel. “In response, the United Way is honored to announce the availability of $38K in Emergency Food and Shelter funding to help our nonprofit partners address the basic human needs of hundreds of thousands of families in our community.” 

The deadline for submitting completed applications is 4 p.m. on Friday, July 8, 2022. 

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program National Board, chaired by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency, announced that Westchester is awarded $10,852 for Phase 39 and $27,580 for Phase ARPA-R. The spending period for the two concurrent phases is November 1, 2021, to April 23, 2023. 

Eligible applicants must: 1) be nonprofit; 2) be eligible to receive federal funds; 3) have an accounting system or an approved fiscal agent; 4) conduct an annual audit if awarded $25,000 or more in federal funds; 5) practice non-discrimination; 6) have demonstrated the capability to deliver emergency food and shelter services; 7) have a voluntary board; 8) have the capacity to either chargeback or expend Phase 39 and Phase ARPA-R funding during the jurisdiction’s selected spending period; 9) must be able to completely and accurately obtain, retain and submit required documentation with reports and use DocuSign and online reporting. 

Qualified organizations are encouraged to apply. 

The application is available online at www.uwwp.org/efsp2022. Applicants can obtain further information on the program by contacting: Faith Ann Butcher, EFSP Director at United Way of Westchester and Putnam, at (914) 997-6700 ext. 753. 

United Way of Westchester and Putnam is the administrative agent of the Local EFSP Boards in Westchester County. 

The Westchester Community Foundation awarded $15,000 to Community Organizations Active in Disasters of Westchester County, NY (COAD) to be used for hiring a COAD coordinator to assist disaster preparedness and recovery efforts in Westchester. As the fiscal agent, United Way of Westchester and Putnam received the funds and hired a staff member to handle the responsibilities.

The Westchester COAD Coordinator will align communication, information gathering and distribution, and coordination of resources during disaster recovery efforts among Westchester County community organizations. This includes nonprofits, faith-based organizations, governmental agencies, businesses, and other organizations and agencies. As the fiduciary for the Westchester COAD, United Way of Westchester and Putnam intends to provide more support for this important group in responding to crises in our community in the wake of a record number of activations and in an earnest effort to be proactive for the next set of crises.

“The Westchester Community Foundation has been a vital partner to the COAD for many years, and we thank them for the grant and for working with our organization, in partnership with the United Way of Westchester and Putnam, to help the organization grow. The goal here is to foster communication, education, and coordination among Westchester County organizations which would improve efficiency and effectiveness as we share and allocate precious resources during a disaster,” said Richard Slingerland, chairman of the Westchester COAD. “This process will promote proactivity for increasing disaster recovery readiness through outreach. Having an exempt staffer to support this workload will dedicate the necessary attention and time to the needs of Westchester COAD. The key to disaster recovery is having a plan in place and sharing it with both the community and its organizations before an emergency. This step will help ensure that happens.”

The COAD coordinator’s activities will include but will not be limited to:

-Develop and maintain a database of all community organizations with the primary contact person(s) and their contact information in Westchester County. This will include nonprofits, faith-based organizations, government, businesses, and other organizations and agencies.

- In partnership with the Westchester County COAD, draft, revise, and finalize informational/educational materials to be distributed to community organizations countywide.

-Conduct communication efforts via email, phone call, online, paper-based, and social media with Westchester County community organizations regarding disaster recovery.

-In partnership with the Westchester COAD, develop a standardized disaster recovery protocol/manual for Westchester County organizations.

-Coordinate cross-sector disaster recovery efforts across Westchester County

Benefits to having a COAD Coordinator, Slingerland said, will include improving communication and outreach efforts across Westchester community organizations, ensuring updated and aligned informational materials are disseminated across the county, and having a central ‘hub’ to coordinate cross-sector efforts. Expected outcomes of having a COAD Coordinator will be increased communication across Westchester County community organizations; increased diversity of resources delivered to disaster recovery victims; Increased conservation of resources among community organizations and increased number of disaster recovery victims receiving support.

Tom Gabriel, President and CEO of United Way of Westchester and Putnam, applauded the Westchester Community Foundation for its generosity.

“We thank the Westchester Community Foundation for their efforts and contributions to this new role,” he said. “The COAD coordinator will not only help us to continue to serve the community in the midst of a disaster but to make sure we are as prepared as possible before a disaster occurs.”

The general membership of the Westchester COAD meets monthly to discuss the needs of the community, available resources, and to ensure disaster readiness. New members who represent the community- or faith-based organizations, governments, or businesses are welcome. For more information email [email protected] or visit www.uwwp.org/westchester-coad.

To help nonprofit leaders and their champions make the case for the economic impact of the nonprofit sector, the Hudson Valley Funders Network (HVFN) and guest speakers will present a free, informative, and interactive webinar on the “Mission and More” report, on June 27, from 1:30-2:30 p.m. 

The report, “Mission and More: The Economic Power of the Hudson Valley’s Nonprofit Sector,” was conducted by the New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc. (NYCON) and commissioned by HVFN in order to provide regional and county-specific facts that demonstrate the scope, scale, and economic impact of the sector. 

Speakers will provide highlights from the report, a demonstration of the county dashboards, and guidance on how the report can be used as a tool to educate and inform audiences. 

The free, informative, and interactive webinar is scheduled for June 27, from 1:30-2:30 p.m. 

Registration Link: https://www.nycon.org/news-events/events/event/347 

The Hudson Valley Funders Network will continue to offer workshops for nonprofits and related organizations to share the report’s findings and recommend ways of utilizing the information it contains. Visit https://hudsonvalleyfundersnetwork.org/workshops/ for more information

ArtsWestchester would like to invite you and your organization to join us as a Voices for Change Partner and collaborate with us on our newest artist grant initiative funded by the National Endowment of the Arts.

In 2021, ArtsWestchester piloted Voices for Change, a grant program which sought to support artists in making new work while engaging the community. We are able to offer this program again with expanded funding. As a first step in this year's grant cycle, we are inviting non-profit service organizations that serve residents in the Mid-Hudson Valley region to join us as Voices for Change Partners. Partners will be contacted by artists to initiate conversations around potential projects.

Here are some fast facts:

-Voices for Change will award a total of $135,000 to artists.

-Grant awards are made at the $2,500, $5,000, and $10,000 levels, and paid directly to the artist.

-Artists are required to collaborate with a non-profit and can propose a range of activities such as workshops, performances, public art projects, and slam poetry sessions.

-Partners can serve residents in the following counties: Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, or Westchester.

-Partners need to provide the name of a staff member who will serve as an artist liaison during the RFP process and during the implementation of successfully-funded projects.

-Partners can be any kind of nonprofit including healthcare, criminal justice, and cultural centers.

-Partners will be asked to provide a letter of support by the artists for their application.

If you would like to be added to the Voices for Change Partners roster, please contact Adam Chau at [email protected] – please do not hesitate to ask questions on the guidelines for artists or any other inquiries about this grant opportunity.

Organizations may also join us for a Voices Partners Virtual Info Session on Friday, June 17th at noon.