Community Currents: Winter 2016

Photo courtesy of Alexion Pharmaceuticals.

Here in New Haven is a charitable giving initiative that began January 19th to support 30 local nonprofits dedicated to strengthening the Greater New Haven community. The program, which coincides with Alexion's move to its new global headquarters in New Haven, is part of the Company's commitment to developing productive partnerships within the communities where employees live and work. Through the initiative, Alexion is providing a $1,000 grant each day to a nonprofit profiled on giveGreater.org® over a period of 30 business culminating on February 29, 2016, which is Global Rare Disease Day.

Anthropology, Architecture and Giving Back
Ohly Fund reflects donors' passions

As an anthropologist, Dr. Sara Huntington Ohly has studied how people cope with the often difficult experience of living in a very different culture. As an architect and artist, her husband Nicholas portrayed everyday life as he experienced it, at home in New Haven, in other countries and with other cultures. A donor advised fund at The Community Foundation, established with a bequest from Nicholas, allows Sara to continue to support the organizations in Greater New Haven that he loved as well as those she continues to be passionate about.

Twenty-five Years of Developing Neighborhood Leaders
Relational Culture Community Building Yield Inspired Projects

In 1991, The Foundation began using an asset-based, grassroots approach to building community developed by John McKnight, an urban planner from Chicago. Since then, scores of New Haven residents have gone through the Neighborhood Program with the single goal of improving their community. Past funding has focused on supporting projects, while recent programming has started focusing on identifying and augmenting leadership skills. Recently funded projects include an effort to implement restorative practices in school that help end counter-productive zero-tolerance discipline policies and a curriculum conceived by Hill resident, Olivia Davis, to improve services provided by agencies to women in crisis, mostly residents of area shelters.

Yes, Old Places Matter!
Historic Preservation Contributes to Identity, Stimulates Economy

From the National Historic Landmark Grove Street Cemetery to the clapboard homes of Revolutionary War-era families and centuries-old town greens, Greater New Haven is filled with historically significant buildings, sites and places that connect the community to its past and enrich the present with beauty and craftsmanship. While a historic designation can help protect a place from demolition, it is not always enforceable. Preservation policy has therefore created tax incentive and grant programs that make restoration financially attractive to developers and homeowners. In recent years, these incentives have not only brought new life to beautiful buildings. They have also helped revitalize walkable neighborhoods and downtowns while also attracting private investment and creating jobs.