PITTSBURGH, PA, May 30, 2016—The Opportunity Fund announces support totaling $546,230 in its first cycle of funding. The Board of Directors funded 38 out of 49 requests that were seeking a total of $1,222,860.
A complete list of awarded grants can be found below.
412 Food Rescue ($20,000) to support the Hero App & Technology that automates the matching process between available food, nonprofit recipients, and volunteers to transport the food.
Abolitionist Law Center ($10,000) to support Curing Hepatitis C in Prison, a project to train and organize a network of lawyers to provide pro bono legal representation to prisoners in Pennsylvania who have hepatitis C and who are being denied a newly-developed cure for the disease.
Alia Musica ($15,000) to support a season-long collaboration with Chicago-based vocal quartet Quince Ensemble, culminating in a Spring 2017 joint performance and Pittsburgh premiere of the feature-length landmark “Laborintus II” by Luciano Berio.
ARYSE ($5,000) to support’s Pittsburgh Refugee Youth Summer Enrichment (PRYSE) Academy, a summer camp that includes English and academic skill-building curricula, creative expression workshops, field trips, and programming aimed at shaping refugee youth into engaged and successful members of the Pittsburgh community.
Attack Theatre ($7,500) to support the Commissioning New Choreographers Project, a new collaboration and partnership with two new emerging national choreographers for the 2016/2017 season.
Benefits Data Trust ($20,000) to support the PA Benefits Center to increase access to public benefits for low-income seniors in the region. This effort will provide critical assistance for vulnerable older adults to meet their basic needs, maintain optimal health and achieve economic stability.
Braddock Redux ($15,000) to support barebones productions‘ artist and production fees for their 13th theatrical season consisting of two local premiers.
Calliope House ($5,000) to support general operations for their 2016-2017 season.
Chamber Music Pittsburgh ($15,000) to support artist fees and expenses for its Just Summer series. Presented at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater in East Liberty, the series features eclectic, genre-bending performances by a wide variety of top-notch artists.
Chatham Baroque ($15,000) to support the 26th Annual Concert Series and Residency with Pascale Beaudin, an internationally esteemed French-Canadian soprano.
City of Asylum Pittsburgh ($10,000) to support general operations during the year of transition to the new Alphabet City facility.
COA Youth & Family Centers ($20,000) to support expanded programs at COA’s Riverwest and Goldin Centers to days when school is not in session, and support daily youth programming at COA’s new Holton Youth Center.
Community Human Services Corporation ($15,000) to support Project Silk, a safe, healthy, supportive community environment for LGBT youth of color to grow, celebrate, and express themselves.
CORNINGWORKS ($10,000) to support the fall 2016 season including re-working/re- envisioning the production REMAINS.
Craft Emergency Relief Fund ($5,000) to support CERF+’s emergency relief and recovery services and career protection initiatives for artists working in craft disciplines.
Dreams of Hope ($11,370) to support Qamp 2016 and general operations. Qamp provides LGBTQIA youth a chance to participate in typical camp activities, classes in many art disciplines, and workshops on social justice activism.
Dreams of Hope ($10,000) to support Hatch Arts Collective‘s“Incubate 2016–2017,” including a premiere of the new play DRIFTLESS and a collaboration with Pittsburgh-based choreographer Maree ReMalia.
Front Porch Theatricals ($5,000) to support general operations for the 2016 season including, The Spitfire Grill and Floyd Collins.
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank ($25,000) to support two key programs. The Green Grocer is a “farm stand on wheels” – a customized delivery truck of refrigerated, ready-to-sell perishables. The SNAP outreach initiative connects people with eligible benefits.
Jewish Family & Community Services of Pittsburgh ($25,000), in collaboration with the Alef Institute, to support to families in Squirrel Hill experiencing great stress, especially those with concerns about safety, child abuse, and intimate-partner violence. Funded in partnership with the Allegheny County Department of Human Services.
Kelly Strayhorn Theater ($10,000) to support for the launch of FutureMakers, an experimental lab series for socially engaged artists and creatives from across fields to explore ideas and forge new work at the intersection of art, performance, and social practice.
Kente Arts Alliance ($10,000) to support general operations for the 2016 – 2017 presenting season.
Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild ($15,000) to support MCG Jazz concerts and supporting events associated with its 30th anniversary concert series.
New Hazlett Center for the Performing Arts ($20,000) to support the Community Supported Art (CSA) Performance Series, a new model of subscription series that supports local performing artists in residencies, fosters the creation of new work, and establishes new relationships with local patrons for both the artists and the theater.
New Sun Rising ($15,000) to support Hiawatha Project‘s JH: Mechanics of a Legend. JH: Mechanics of a Legend is a theatrical performance that melds the language of mechanics, century old ballads and primary historical records to explore the legend of John Henry. A diverse group of artists join forces with Hiawatha Project to measure the myth, the man, and the machine.
New Voices for Reproductive Justice ($20,000) to support the Voice Your Vote! Project™, an Integrated Voter Engagement program of New Voices that has reached 80,000 Black women ages 18-49 in Allegheny County since 2014.
PF/PCA ($10,000) to support The Documentary Works‘s Out of Many: Stories of Migration, a photographic and multi-media, interactive portrait of immigration in Pittsburgh.
The Pittsburgh Project ($10,000) to support afterschool programs and summer day camps to at risk young people, most of whom are African American and from the Northside of Pittsburgh.
Rainbow Kitchen Community Services ($10,000) to support anti-hunger programs that provide nutritious supplemental food for low-income people, including: the Food Pantry Program, the daily Breakfast Program, and the daily Kids Café program.
Shared Interest ($10,000) to support general operations. Shared Interest provides marginalized Southern African farmers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners with access to the financing they need to create sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families.
Contemporary Craft ($30,000) to support the Emerging Black Arts Leaders Apprenticeship, which will provide an exceptional young person of color with professional and career development through a year-long opportunity to gain hands-on experience in a professional art organization devoted to the promotion and exhibition of contemporary craft artists.
Squonk Opera ($25,000) to support Cycle Sonic, free public events that celebrate civic life and human power in Pittsburgh, including youth and underserved audiences. The production includes multi-wheeled bike stages that propel a raucous and participatory street theater and celebrate the greenest transportation: bikes.
The St. Bart’s Music Festival ($4,860) to support children ages 10-12 years with the experience of learning to play violins, violas, and cellos and to play together as a chamber ensemble.
Texture Contemporary Ballet ($7,500) to support the 2016-2017 Season. Texture creates and presents original and innovative dance works.
Thomas Merton Center ($15,000) to support Pittsburghers for Public Transit – a grassroots organization of transit riders, workers, and residents working together to defend and expand public transit.
Women’s Law Project ($20,000) to support work to remove an obstacle preventing Pittsburgh from passing progressive public health ordinances, including paid sick leave and pregnancy and nursing accommodations, by reframing these policies as necessary local health ordinances and demonstrating that state law does not preempt them.
YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh (Homewood-Brushton) ($25,000) to support Homewood YMCA Lighthouse, a creative hub for youth in Homewood and across the East End specializing in project based learning and artistic mastery in media, visual and performing arts.
