October 6, 2014
First Niagara Foundation on Thursday announced a $50,000 contribution to Mass Mentoring Partnership, a nonprofit that works to expand quality mentoring programs to children across Western Massachusetts.
“We are excited to continue our partnership with First Niagara in our shared efforts to grow mentoring and the positive impact it has on the young people of Western Massachusetts. Together, our efforts are creating more opportunities for young people to be engaged in the empowering youth-adult relationships that make a tremendous impact on their life and that of their community,” said Marty Martinez, president and CEO of Mass Mentoring Partnership.
Over the past three years, First Niagara’s support for MMP has allowed the organization to establish a mentoring hub in the Greater Springfield area, and create marketing campaigns to raise awareness of the need for mentors and the impact it has across the region, and to increase the number of youth served through direct program support in Western Massachusetts. This year’s grant announcement was held at the Marcella Kelly School in Holyoke, a school that was able to implement a mentoring program of its own thanks to First Niagara’s 2013 grant to MMP. With this year’s grant, the First Niagara Foundation has contributed a total of $200,000 in support to MMP.
“First Niagara is proud to support Mass Mentoring Partnership in its efforts to bring quality mentors and mentoring initiatives to the youth of Western Massachusetts,” said First Niagara’s regional banking director, Marlene Piche. “We are always looking for ways to make a difference in the communities we serve, and hope that First Niagara will stand as an example to other local businesses about the importance of spreading awareness about the value in these mentoring programs.”
In addition to the First Niagara Foundation’s contribution to MMP, it wasannounced today that 39 non-profit organizations across the bank’s footprint in New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Connecticut will also be receiving grants totaling $1 million through First Niagara’s Mentoring Matters program. Mentoring Matters was launched in 2007 with the goal of supporting organizations that help children improve their grades and school attendance, build self-esteem, and avoid the dangers of substance abuse. First Niagara has provided more than $6.25 million to nonprofits and mentoring programs over the past six years.
