NEWS

Age-Friendly Funding Alert: Community Transit Grant Program, Digital Equity in Essex County, Nashoba Valley Healthcare Fund, and More

Mar 30, 2022

The Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative encourages stakeholders and communities to consider the following funding opportunities that support inclusive age- and dementia friendly communities:

MassDOT’s annual Community Transit Grant Program is scheduled to open for applications April 29 and close on June 24. Councils on Aging, non-profits, transit authorities, municipalities, and some taxis can apply for funding for vehicles, mobility management projects, or operating expenses to expand mobility for older adults and people with disabilities.

MHAC’s partners at MassMobility provided a recent report for inspiration on creative examples of how organizations have used this funding in the past. Attendance at a virtual training session – scheduled for April 21 and 27 – is mandatory for new applicants and optional for returning applicants. If you have questions or wish to sign up for a training, contact Jenna Henning at MassDOT.

In cooperation with UMass-Lowell, the Essex County Community Foundation is seeking ideas and projects that expand access, tools and learning opportunities so all members of our community can fully participate in the digital world.
Ideas could include a mobile app, a software, a service, a product, a new program, or other technology that leads to increased digital capacity for residents of Essex County. The identified areas of need include “seniors.”
More information, including the application link, is available here.

The Nashoba Valley Health Care Fund focuses on advancing the community health of residents in eleven (11) communities: Ashby, Ayer, Bolton, Groton, Harvard, Lancaster, Littleton, Lunenburg, Pepperell, Shirley, and Townsend.

Priority will be given to, but not limited to, proposals pertaining to prevention of health problems, access to healthcare services, elder health, youth and adolescent health, and behavioral health.

Grant awards will range from $5,000 up to $20,000; however, larger-scale collaborative projects with requests that are more than $20,000 will be considered if the increased funding request is justified by the impact of the project.

For more information, visit the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts.

  • REMINDER – Boston Age Strong Commission: The Creating Connections and Reducing Isolation Grant (Deadline – April 7)

Boston’s Age Strong Commission seeks grant applications from organizations and individuals who are working to build social connections and community for Boston’s older adults. Causes of and factors influencing social isolation vary widely; thus we encourage applications from a variety of disciplines and perspectives.

More information on this grant opportunity is available here.

The Massachusetts Housing Partnership (MHP) is pleased to announce the launch of their Complete Neighborhoods Initiative. This program concentrates technical assistance, resources, and investments within designated districts over multiple years to support the creation of mobility-rich, mixed-use, mixed-income neighborhoods. It is available to all communities in the Commonwealth.

The program will select up to 12 communities to receive up to $150,000 each in technical assistance for a total of $1.8 million over a five-year period of the program. Six will be selected in 2022 and six in 2023. Services will be performed by MHP staff and/or third-party consultants. No direct funds will be awarded to selected communities.