The MVSB (Meredith Village Savings Bank) Fund at the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation has awarded $124,500 in grant funding to 39 local nonprofit organizations. This includes $108,500 donated to 23 local agencies and $16,000 to 16 area food pantries. The grants are in addition to MVSB’s contributions throughout the year in the form of donations, sponsorships, scholarships and volunteer efforts by employees.

“Each year, grants from the MVSB Fund help our local nonprofit organizations make meaningful improvements, add programming and simply keep up with demand, which has been especially challenging in recent years,” said Marcus Weeks, MVSB President. “We are grateful to our local non-profits for the quality services they bring to local individuals and families and we are proud to extend our support with this funding.” 

This year’s MVSB Fund grant recipients include:

Annie's Angels Memorial Fund, Stratham

Awarded $5,000 to help families and individuals who are facing challenging circumstances heat their homes this winter. The mission of Annie’s Angels Memorial Fund is to help local families struggling financially through a life threatening disease, illness or disability. They have various programs that serve the diverse needs of the community.

Articine, Newfields

Awarded $5,000 to hire 2-3 Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) artists as content creators to collaborate on a video series specific to the BIPOC healthcare worker. By telling human stories through performances and workshops, Articine integrates the arts and medicine to inspire healthcare providers to deliver more empathetic and effective patient care.

Arts In Reach, Portsmouth

Awarded $5,000 to support after-school and artists programs for underserved and at-risk teens. Arts In Reach is an out-of-school program committed to closing opportunity gaps for teens who face inequities and lack access to high-quality programming based on gender identity, health, neurodiversity, race, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status.

The Bearcamp Center for Sustainable Community, South Tamworth

Awarded $4,500 to move and renovate the center’s kitchen to a newer wing. The Bearcamp Center for Sustainable Community is an organization located on the historic Perkins Farm in South Tamworth, doing good works in the heart of Carroll County, especially to address food insecurity, out-of-school education programming and elder initiatives.

Belknap House, Laconia

Awarded $5,000 for case management services that support families to become self-sufficient in order to acquire housing. Belknap House's mission is to provide families in Belknap County a safe shelter, when children are particularly at-risk during homelessness, and to empower families to become self-sufficient and independent by providing opportunities of education and resources available to them.

Camp Resilience, Gilford

Awarded $5,000 to fund a Winter 2023 Veteran Health and Wellness Retreat. Camp Resilience leverages the scenic outdoors of the Lakes Region to improve the physical, social, mental and emotional well-being of military service members, military veterans, first responders and their families.

Child Advocacy Center of Rockingham County, Portsmouth

Awarded $5,000 to expand its prevention and wrap around services to families impacted by abuse and violence and keep children safe and healthy. The Child Advocacy Center of Rockingham County works to provide a safe environment for the evaluation of alleged abuse of children 3 to 18 years of age.

Community Wellness Center, Laconia

Awarded $5,000 to assist in the purchase of needed exercise equipment. The Community Wellness Center is a nonprofit organization available to serve the health and fitness needs of everyone.

Foster and Adoptive Resource Exchange, Manchester

Awarded $5,000 to increase the number of normalcy grants awarded, extending opportunities for foster and adoptive children to participate in activities. The mission of Foster and Adoptive Resource Exchange is to strengthen and unify foster, adoptive and kinship families with support, education and services to encourage normalcy and create moments that matter. 

Got Lunch, Ashland and Holderness

Awarded $2,000 to provide food and milk vouchers to children from low- to moderate-income families during school breaks. Got Lunch is a community-based program serving Ashland and Holderness that provides healthy lunches to children during their summer and winter break.

Granite State Adaptive, Mirror Lake

Awarded $4,000 to support after-school and weekend youth programing. Granite State Adaptive’s mission is to provide individuals who have a disability the opportunity to develop independence, confidence, life skills and fitness through participation in sports, therapy, training and recreation programs.

Inter-Lakes Middle High School / The Lakerbots – First Robotics Competition Team 8046, Meredith

Awarded $5,000 to purchase manufacturing equipment, electronics and storage. The Lakerbots’ mission is to inspire young people to be responsible contributing citizens by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, technology, engineering, art and math skills that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication and leadership.

Mid-State Health Center, Plymouth

Awarded $5,000 to fund the Feed the Need program, which utilizes evidence-based screening methods to identify and assist patients who are food insecure at the time of their visit. The mission of Mid-State Health Center is to provide sound primary health care to the community accessible to all regardless of the ability to pay.

Mount Washington Valley Adult Day Center, Center Conway

Awarded $5,000 to underwrite the cost of enrollment, care, transportation and therapeutic programs at the center. Mount Washington Valley Adult Day Center’s mission is to provide exceptional compassionate care and companionship to older adults with degenerative conditions or dementia challenges and to provide their family and caregivers confident respite.

New Beginnings - Without Violence & Abuse, Laconia

Awarded $5,000 to support the survivor empowerment program which offers 24-hour crisis intervention, accompaniment, safe shelter for victims and their children, weekly support groups for all ages, transitional housing, financial empowerment programming and systems advocacy. New Beginnings – Without Violence & Abuse is dedicated to ending sexual, domestic, and stalking violence through the provision of safe and effective services, including emergency refuge and support; and works toward social change by promoting an effective community response to violence.

Ossipee Concerned Citizens, Center Ossipee

Awarded $5,000 to offset cost of increasing food and utility prices for community programs. Ossipee Concerned Citizens is a human services agency that offers the Elderly Nutrition Program, Ossipee Concerned Citizens Senior Center and the Ossipee Concerned Citizens Child Care Center.

Pemi Youth Center, Plymouth

Awarded $2,500 to support the Center’s life skills programming for youth. The mission of the Pemi Youth Center is to provide a safe and welcoming environment where our youth may gather outside of school and gain a sense of community, belonging and self-esteem.

Plymouth Area Recovery Connection (PARC), Plymouth

Awarded $5,000 to help build staffing capacity to support their recovery community organization services, which includes expanding outreach to create individualized care plans shaped by client-driven goals. The Plymouth Area Recovery Connection provides a caring and supportive environment for anyone seeking assistance with substance use along with referrals for their loved ones.

SHARE Fund, Rochester

Awarded $7,500 to support the fresh dairy program for food pantry participants. SHARE Fund’s mission is to provide material and financial assistance to address emergency basic needs and inspire people to become financially self-sufficient.

SOS Recovery Community Organization, Rochester

Awarded $5,000 to provide scholarship opportunities for the Peer Assisted Recovery curriculum. The curriculum is an extensive multiday boot camp that focuses on providing peer-based supports, suicide prevention, ethical considerations, HIV and Hepatitis C awareness and motivational interviewing. The mission of SOS Recovery Community Organization is to support all people affected by substance use with peer-based solutions and advocacy to reduce the harm and stigma of drugs.

Tamworth Community Nurse Association, Tamworth

Awarded $5,000 to support the first steps toward expanding capacity for their residents and disseminating their model of care to nearby communities. Tamworth Community Nurse Association is a free skilled nursing service founded to ensure no one in the town of Tamworth would go without healthcare due to financial difficulties or the lack of access to the healthcare system. They offer support for the physical, social and mental health of every citizen by providing skilled nursing care and coordination of available services all with no fee for service.

Transportation Assistance for Seacoast Citizens, Hampton

Awarded $3,000 to defray the cost of marketing and volunteer mileage reimbursement for transportation services. Transportation Assistance for Seacoast Citizens helps people maintain their health, independence and dignity by mobilizing volunteer drivers to provide rides to eligible residents of the Seacoast communities they serve.

White Horse Recovery Center, Center Ossipee

Awarded $5,000 to provide recovery services scholarships to those unable to pay for treatment. The mission of White Horse Recovery is to provide behavioral health services that meet the individual needs of those they serve, offering a path to a better tomorrow.

Food Pantries

Sixteen local food pantries that serve the same communities as MVSB will also share a donation of $16,000.

The MVSB Fund was established in 1997 under the leadership of John Starrett, then President and CEO of the Bank. Since then, 486 grants totaling $1,928,748 have been awarded to a wide range of environmental, social, educational and historic projects throughout the Greater Lakes Region, Plymouth and NH Seacoast areas. Over the years, the Fund has supported literacy programs, after-school programs, environmental monitoring and education, restoration of historic structures, organizations that provide support for individuals and families in challenging circumstances and equipment that helps save lives. The deadline for consideration in the next grant cycle is October 15, 2023. Applications are available at mvsb.com.

Unlike a stock bank, MVSB is a mutual savings bank that operates for the benefit of its depositors, borrowers and surrounding communities. As a result, MVSB has remained steadfast in fostering the economic health and well-being of the community since it was founded in 1869. For over 150 years, Meredith Village Savings Bank (MVSB), has been serving the people, businesses, nonprofits and municipalities of New Hampshire. MVSB and its employees are guided by the values of accountability, mutuality, excellence, respect, integrity, teamwork and stewardship. To learn more, visit any of the local branch offices located in Alton, Ashland, Center Harbor, Gilford, Laconia, Melvin Village, Meredith, Moultonborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Rochester or Wolfeboro, call 800.922.6872 or visit mvsb.com.

Caption: Marcus Weeks, MVSB President, (second from left) stands with MVSB Fund Committee members (from left) Carmen Lorentz, Charley Hanson and Rachel Xavier. (Not pictured: Committee members Michael O’Leary and Rick Alphers). Courtesy Photo