Written by Sigrid Kun, Guilford Events Magazine

Benincasa Community Farm (BCF).  BCF contributes approximately 2 tons of sustainably grown fruits and vegetables to local food pantries such as St. George in Guilford. BCF also offers programming for students (including GHS students meeting volunteer requirements) focused on environmental stewardship, sustainability, and food justice to promote greater food access and healthy lifestyles. TGF’s grant award will assist in purchasing and installing a greenhouse/high tunnel that allows for near-year-round fruit and vegetable production at the farm, additional programming for students, and food pantry distributions.

Camp Hazen YMCA. Camp Hazen, YMCA’s year-round camping, outdoor education, and conference center in Chester, CT, is committed to helping youth develop valuable life skills through camping experiences that build healthy bodies, open minds, and awakened spirits. Overnight Camp (Grades 3-10), Day Camp (1st-7th grade), and Leadership Programs (entering 11th grade) address the social, cultural, and recreational needs of youth and give them the tools and values to make positive decisions to succeed in the future. TGF funding provides Guilford residents with financial assistance to enjoy this vibrant and unique environment.

Guilford A Better Chance (GABC). TGF funding supports the work of GABC, which offers academically gifted girls of color the opportunity to attend Guilford High School, live in a caring community with a strong professional support team, and focus on a road to success through academic achievement and personal growth. Six GABC girls have been chosen from among hundreds of applicants to provide A Better Chance to students from communities lacking access to quality educational programs. The goal is to lessen the academic divide, one scholar at a time, and to prepare these students for a lifetime of achievement. GABC scholars have gone on to attend prestigious colleges and universities such as Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, and others.

Guilford Before and After School Care Program (GCC BASC). TGF funding assists the GCC BASC mission to provide before-school care (7-9 am) and after-school care (3-6 pm) for children 5 to 12 years old. Care is offered to school-age children whose families reside in Guilford and need childcare due to work schedules. The program delivers a much-needed service to the Guilford community, including one- and two-income families, single parents, grandparents, and guardians. TGF funding supports GCC BASC’s goal of offering financial assistance to those who need it.

GCC Early Education (GCC EE). GCC EE offers high-quality early education and before and after-school programs for children (ages 3-5) of working families in Guilford and surrounding towns. A TGF grant helps support GCC EE in providing a safe, positive, nurturing, inclusive, and consistent atmosphere as the foundation for each child’s social-emotional, physical, language, and cognitive development. GCC EE programs foster the development of self-awareness, self-expression, independence, and appropriate conflict-resolution skills. TGF funding aids GCC EEE in providing tuition assistance to support Guilford families financially.

Guilford Youth Mentoring (GYM).  GYM is an award-winning school-based program designed to support and encourage students as they transition from childhood to adulthood. It provides one-on-one mentors available to follow them throughout their Guilford Public Schools experience. A TGF grant assists GYM in addressing the increased requests for mentors for students in need.  Moreover, as the number of participants grows, the funds support training workshops, promotional and recruiting materials, and supplies for mentor/mentee activities. The goal is to improve the life path of the students who benefit from the program while enriching the lives of the mentor volunteers as they give back to their community.

Junior Achievement of Southwest New England (JA).  A grant from TGF allows JA to provide experiential career readiness and financial literacy programs for 1,000 Guilford High School students during the 2024-25 school year. These programs help GHS to meet the Mastery-Based Diploma Assessment (MBDA) requirements. Corporate and community volunteers deliver relevant, hands-on experiences to teach the basics of financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. JA programs empower students to make a connection between what they learn in school and how it can be applied in the real world. They also give them strong foundational skills with the confidence to make their dreams a reality.

Little Sprouts (LS).  The dedicated staff at LS is excited to bring a quality preschool program back to the North Guilford community. LS boasts traditional preschool offerings for children ages 2, 3, 4, and 5. Now in the form of Little Sprouts, TGF leadership and investment enabled the relaunch of this memorable first-school experience. The school takes pride in understanding each child’s educational and social needs so they can be self-reliant and confident and become lifelong learners. Parents also see their children grow and learn with more educational opportunities, and families will easily transition their children to kindergarten. LS provides preschool enrichment and summer camp programs.