More than 50 nonprofits serving Newport County will share $290,000 in grants from the Rhode Island Foundation, the organization announced Friday.
The grants come through the Foundation’s Newport County Fund, which awards up to $10,000 per organization to expand established programs, support advocacy, fund new projects or build partnerships. Funding decisions were made with an advisory committee of residents from every Newport County community.
“We are honored to be able to help our community partners carry out their vital work,” said David N. Cicilline, the Foundation’s president and CEO.
Among the larger awards:
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center received $10,000 for a new satellite food pantry at 120 Hillside Ave. near Miantonomi Park in Newport’s North End. Open three days a week, it offers a traditional pantry along with the center’s Produce to the People program. Executive Director Heather Strout said transportation from the North End to the downtown location is a challenge for many clients, and the new site brings two of the organization’s most vital programs directly into the neighborhood.
The Housing Hotline in Newport received $10,000 for its temporary shelter program, which places unsheltered city residents in area hotels until longer-term housing is found. Executive Director Jimmy Winter said the organization serves people coping with housing insecurity, health concerns, addiction, employment barriers, hunger and lack of insurance or transportation.
The James L. Maher Center in Middletown received $10,000 for workshops on social skill development for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, practiced in community settings. Executive Director Lynne Maher said transportation limits, cost and a lack of inclusive programming often keep participants from broader community opportunities.
Child & Family in Middletown received $7,200 for crisis intervention serving older adults, a program reaching roughly 450 county residents a year, most of them 60 or older. President and CEO Susan Jacobsen said responses often involve rental support, help with food and utilities, short hotel stays and assistive devices that let people remain at home.
Friends of the Jamestown Philomenian Library received $5,000 for a new audio-visual system in the library’s Meeting Hall, which seats up to 85 and hosts lectures, movies, story times, tax preparation and technology classes. Director Lisa Sheley said the dated equipment no longer meets community needs.
Other recipients include the Aquidneck Food Pantry, Bike Newport, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Newport County, Conanicut Island Sailing Foundation, Conexion Latina Newport, Fort Adams Trust, the Herron Project in Tiverton, the Little Compton Community Food Bank, Newport Gulls, Newport Historical Society, Newport Pride, Newport Tree Conservancy, Norman Bird Sanctuary, RENEWport, Sail Newport, SVCP St. Joseph Newport, the Village Common, Visiting Nurse Home and Hospice, and the Women’s Resource Center.
Established in 2002, the Newport County Fund has awarded more than $6.6 million for programs serving Jamestown, Little Compton, Middletown, Newport, Portsmouth and Tiverton. The Foundation has awarded $14.3 million to Newport County nonprofits since 2023.
More information is at rifoundation.org.
