Nearly a Dozen Organizations Receive Support for Community-Based Projects and Initiatives
BOONVILLE — Eleven organizations that serve residents of Boonville, Constableville and Westernville will receive 2019 grant awards from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund at the Northern New York Community Foundation.
Grants totaling $32,500 will support programs and projects that broadly impact the quality of life for residents from the three communities. Nearly 20 organizations applied for funding in the second year the opportunity has been made available. In 2018, the Sawyer Community Fund awarded $30,000 to 12 community-based organizations.
“Thanks to the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer, this is one of the most far-reaching and meaningful ways to forever impact the communities they loved and worked hard to support,” said Max DelSignore, Northern New York Community Foundation assistant director.
The Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund was established in 2018 as a geographic-specific fund to support programs, projects and initiatives that broadly impact and enhance the quality of life in Boonville, Constableville and Westernville in perpetuity. The Sawyers were passionate about the quality of life in their community, participating in many community activities and volunteering for several local organizations. Through the community fund, the Sawyer family established a lasting charitable resource that will positively impact these communities forever.
The following organizations will receive 2019 grant funding from the Sawyer Community Fund:
- Erwin Library and Institute — $5,400 to help repair building front steps, complete outside stone work, and launch new multi-generational programs for local residents. Programming will begin this summer through the fall.
- Boonville Cemetery Association — $5,000 to help expand the cemetery and identify additional sources of funding for an expansion project.
- Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center — $4,150 to help improve a sound system to enhance the music and theater programs. Funding will also support the center’s FIRST LEGO League robotics program.
- Constable Hall Association — $4,000 matching grant to help complete major repairs to the hall’s chimney and roof that will help protect the association’s assets and artifacts. This award is a matching grant to generate additional community support for the project.
- Village of Boonville — $4,000 to help the village purchase playground equipment at Erwin Park and install a wheelchair swing and interactive play station for all residents.
- Boonville Black River Canal Museum — $2,750 to help purchase equipment and materials to reduce moisture, mold and mildew and preserve artifacts and displays in future years.
- Friends of Erwin Park — $2,000 to aid in support for the first phase of a “master renewal project” at the park, which includes installation of a splash pad.
- Constableville Fire Company Inc. — $1,500 to help acquire an industrial washing machine to appropriately clean turnout gear.
- Village of Constableville — $1,500 to help landscape the playground with new bedding chips and installation of a new border to keep the chips in the space. The funding also supports supplies to paint- and stain-tired sections of the playground.
- Adirondack Community Chorus — $1,200 to purchase music for upcoming performances in the 2019-2020 season. The organization plans to conduct three major concerts during the season, including one during the Christmas season. Funding may also be designated to cover costs of any special instrumentalists performing at the concerts.
- North Country Proudly Honors Inc. — $1,000 to fund the placement of flag banners along community streets to honor local military veterans and service members. Grant funding will also support a planned yearbook of honorees and framed banners for family sponsors to receive at a banner reception.
The application for the next grant cycle for funding from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund will be available in February 2020.
About Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer
Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer participated in many community events and activities through the years and served on local boards and committees. Mr. Sawyer was a Boonville native, served in the United States Army, and enjoyed a career at Layng Furniture Company and as a supervisor at Boonville’s Erwin Park. Most notably, he was a talented musician. He played tenor saxophone in his high school band and clarinet with the Boonville Village Band. He frequently played with three separate drum and bugle corps in Boonville and Rome. Mr. Sawyer died in 2008.
Mrs. Sawyer completed a successful career of more than 45 years at Rome Savings Bank and was an avid follower of the stock market. She also served on the finance committee of Boonville United Methodist Church. She assisted organizations such as the Daughters of the American Revolution, Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center, the Erwin Library, and the Boonville Cemetery. Mrs. Sawyer died in 2015.
In 2017, the Kenneth V. Sawyer and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Scholarship Fund was established through the Northern New York Community Foundation to benefit Adirondack Central School graduates. The endowed fund will award two scholarships each year forever, supporting the business and music pursuits of high school graduates from the district.
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 in communities across Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.
Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, generous individual donors and families, and charitable foundations, 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 enduring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.
The Community Foundation is a resource for donors, local charitable organizations, and professional advisors. 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.