Filling the Gap, Inc., has announced its 2020 grants, awarding a record $107,680 to support people with disabilities.

Filling the Gap is a Jamestown-based not-for-profit that works with The Resource Center and other organizations to support Chautauqua County residents who are poor, distressed and underprivileged, especially people with disabilities.  Each year, Filling the Gap solicits grant requests from TRC and other organizations within the Filling the Gap network.

This year’s funding requests totaled $203,925.   Filling the Gap’s Grants Committee studied the requests and recommended which ones to fund, and FTG’s Board of Directors agreed with the committee’s recommendations.  Some requests were denied because other funding sources are available; other requests were turned down because the pandemic caused the activities to be canceled or postponed to next year.

With the amount awarded this year, Filling the Gap has now given out $1,369,738 in grants since 1995.  This year’s awards are as follows:

• $20,000 matching grant for the development of The Resource Center’s Edgewater Art House
• $12,000 to TEAM Services for transportation vouchers
• $11,400 to TRC Community Health Center for physical therapy equipment
• $10,000 for the Chautauqua Connections Children’s Coalition
• $10,000 to TRC to launch Structured Skill Development programs within the Gateways and Passages PROS Programs
• $6,000 matching grant to The Resource Center to help fund construction of a replica of TRC’s Carl Cappa Building at the Children’s Safety and Education Village
• $6,000 to TRC to support advocacy, self-advocacy and outreach initiatives
• $5,000 to TRC to acquire therapeutic robots to assist people with autism
• $5,000 to TRC to help people overcome barriers to maintaining employment
• $5,000 to TRC to support supervisory training
• $4,100 to TRC Community Health Center for occupational therapy equipment and supplies
• $3,000 to TRC Community Health Center to replace the EKG machine in the Primary Care Office
• $3,000 to TRC for assistive technology to help people enhance their independence and decrease their need for staff support
• $2,430 to TRC’s Counseling and Psychiatric Services to buy health-related equipment and supplies
• $1,450 to TRC for the agency’s annual picnic
• $1,265 to TRC Community Health Center to help pay for IQ testing
• $900 to TRC Community Health Center to replace medical equipment in the Primary Care Office
• $600 to TRC to support training for parents and caregivers of people with developmental disabilities
• $485 to TRC Community Health Center for speech therapy supplies

Filling the Gap officials are proud they could provide money to support a variety of initiatives.

“Filling the Gap is happy to once again award grants to The Resource Center and the FTG network,” said Cindy Hitchcock, vice president of business and finance.  “It is always heart-warming to be able to fund the unmet needs for the various programs.”

Most of the money for the grants comes from fund-raising events that Filling the Gap facilitates in partnership with The Resource Center.  Proceeds from these events are transferred to the various TRC endowment funds at the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation.  The income from these endowment funds is used to fulfill the grant requests.