Applications for 2022 Grant Awards Now Open for Tri-County Women
WATERTOWN — Applications for grant support from the Maxine Quigg Women in Business Fund of the Northern New York Community Foundation are now being accepted for 2022 awards.
Maxine’s sister-in-law, Kimberley Horrill, established the fund at the Community Foundation in July 2021 with a goal to increase local mentorship, volunteerism, civic and community engagement, and investment. Its mission is to perpetuate the life and legacy of Maxine Quigg by supporting and empowering women entrepreneurs in Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties to succeed in their pursuits and realize their full potential.
“Maxine and I spoke often about the value of female role models and mentors in business and leadership. We shared many stories of the women who inspired us to take risks, who taught us to take the work seriously but not ourselves (we laughed about that), and the importance of paying our knowledge and generosity forward,” Ms. Horrill said. “These conversations were the impetus for this fund.”
Maxine was a successful real estate broker, community and business leader in Jefferson County who passed away unexpectedly in April 2021. At the time of her passing she was serving on the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors.
“My Mom moved to Watertown not knowing a soul, yet she greeted the community with an optimistic mindset, thinking ‘What can I do here to make a change?’ She embodied what it means to work with what you have, where you are, when you can. Her original intent was not to form the leading real estate brokerage in Northern New York — although she and her business partner, Terry O’Brien, did just that,” her daughter, Kennedy Quigg said. “Instead, from day one, her intention was to work hard, embrace new challenges, and treat everyone with respect and dignity. These are the qualities that made my Mom a successful businesswoman, and these qualities we hope to perpetuate through her grant fund.”
Through access to grants for education, training, and entrepreneurship, the fund will support the advancement, development, and betterment of women who are beginning or growing a business in Northern New York. In so doing, women may be better positioned and equipped to realize their full potential for themselves, their families, and their community.
As Maxine embodied the synergy and correlation between a successful business and its contributions to the quality of life in a community, grants will be awarded to support the following focus areas and perpetuate her legacy of giving back to a community once a business is well established and thriving:
- Provide a strengthened path for an increase in locally generated mentorships, volunteerism, and civic and community engagement and investment.
- Expand opportunities for women through education, training, and entrepreneurship with the goal of financial independence.
- Funding opportunities include, but are not limited to financial literacy, workforce development, entrepreneurship, leadership skills, and formal education and training.
Grants awarded to individuals are held to a high standard of accountability and must adhere to the same requirements as any other grants or scholarships to individuals. Grant awards must support the betterment of the recipient herself and are not provided as direct support to a specific business entity or interest. Applicants may request any amount of grant support, though awards may range between $500 and $1,000. The deadline to apply is Thursday, May 12, 2022.
An advisory committee of the Community Foundation will select annual awardees through a defined process on an objective and nondiscriminatory basis within the fund’s charitable purpose. Contact Kraig Everard, Community Foundation director of stewardship and programs, kraig@nnycf.org, or 315-782-7110, to obtain an application and learn more.
About the Northern New York Community Foundation
Since 1929, the Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and enriching the quality of life for all in communities across Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.
Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, charitable foundations, and generous families and individual donors, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for generations to come by preserving and honoring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.
The Community Foundation is a resource for local charitable organizations, donors, professional advisors and nonprofit organizations. It also works to bring people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative solutions that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live, work, and play.