NYN Media Buzz: Dec. 27, 2017

The Adirondack Trust Co., a Saratoga County community bank, handed out more than $50,000 in grants to 29 upstate nonprofits at a reception earlier this month, The Post-Star reports. An exact breakdown of the grants remains unavailable, but part of the money will go to the Nipper Knolls Equine Center to help fund programming for special needs children. The Family Service Association of Glens Falls received money for an emergency housing and utilities program. Youth who attend the Glens Falls Area Youth Center will be provided with after-school snacks, the Queensbury Senior Citizens will fund an education program and Hands and Paws will purchase basic supplies for children entering crisis shelters and foster care in Saratoga, Warren and Washington counties.

The Westchester Community Foundation has had a record year for grant-making. The Hartsdale-based nonprofit awarded $690,000 in new grants on Dec. 22 to bring its 2017 total to $2.1 million. A full list of 2017 recipients can be found here. The foundation, a division of The New York Community Trust, is also staying busy another way. “We are collecting data on health disparities, issues of concern for the LGBTQ community and employment opportunities for young people in Mount Vernon, Yonkers and New Rochelle,” Executive Director Laura Rossi said in a press release. “The results will be shared with donors, nonprofit leaders and community stakeholders.” The release date for any findings was not included in the press release.

The New York City Department of Education needs some help when it comes to translating Arabic, Bengali, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Urdu. The department posted a solicitation (R1058) for translation and interpretation services, which is due at 1 p.m. on Feb. 6. The request for proposals seeks two organizations that are up to tasks that include on-site interpretation services, video interpretation and written translation. More information on the selection criteria can be found here or by emailing VendorHotline@schools.nyc.gov with the RFP number and title in the subject line.

Seniors received some Christmas cheer at five LGBT-friendly senior centers in New York City operated by SAGE. The events were part of the organization’s effort to combat isolation among older people during the holiday season. The New York City-based nonprofit is the oldest in the nation oriented toward LGBT seniors, which now also operates a national network of affiliates.