Several Southington Causes Aided By Major Foundation Funding

Main Street Community Foundation

SOUTHINGTON, CT — Several Southington-based agencies recently benefitted from $283,000 in grants awarded to boost access to health and wellness services in town.

The Bristol-based Main Street Community Foundation via the Bradley Henry Barnes and Leila Upson Barnes Memorial Trust awarded$283,705 in grants to organizations that improve
the health outcomes of Southington residents.

Since the beginning of 2024, the foundation has awarded more than $910,000 from the trust, with grants supporting behavioral health, healthcare needs for the aging population, and healthy initiatives and lifestyles.

The most recent grants awarded are:

• Bread For Life - $43,000 – Support for the meal program for Southington’s food-insecure population totaling over 350 clients, many of whom are homeless.

Specifically, the grant will assist with the purchase of food, related items for packaging, and expenses for meal delivery to homebound residents, such as gas and vehicle maintenance.

• Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington - $28,425 - Health, safety, and well-being initiatives for Southington’s young children and their caregivers are being supported for the fourth year.

Each initiative in the program focuses on a different topic and is delivered in-person at events, through the ECCS website, social media channels, and via webinars.

• Friends of Southington Community Services - $10,000 - Funds will be used for emergency food
purchases and other basic needs of Southington residents.

• Southington Community Cultural Arts (SoCCA) - $25,000 – This grant will support the All Access program for neurodiverse adults with learning differences.

The program teaches creative work skills, provides a source of income for participants through the sale of their art, and increases socialization and self-confidence, thereby enhancing quality of life.

• Southington Education Foundation (SEF) - $44,280 – A collaboration between the SEF, STEPS,
and the Southington Public Schools will design and implement a new social-emotional learning
curriculum in all K-12 classrooms.

• The Orchards at Southington - $33,000 - Adaptive exercise equipment is being purchased for a
newly renovated gym, which has expanded capacity for residents of the Orchards’ independent and assisted living center as well as community members.

• UConn Health - $100,000 – For the third year, a grant supports UConn Health’s Child and Family Development Program which provides an array of mental health services for children and families in Southington.

The center provides parent support groups, behavioral management groups, prevention
groups to improve children’s emotional competence, drop-in consultation hours and psychological evaluations for medication.

The Bradley Henry Barnes and Leila Upson Barnes Memorial Trust was established over 50 years ago to provide funds for the benefit and betterment of Southington.

For more information on the Bradley Henry Barnes and Leila Upson Barnes Memorial Trust, or Main Street Community Foundation, call 860-583-6363 or visit mainstreetfoundation.org. The foundation works with donors in Bristol, Burlington, Plainville, Plymouth, Southington, and Wolcott.