Valerie's House Receives Grief Reach Grant from the New York Life Foundation
/FL, October 26, 2020 – Valerie’s House announced today a $25,000 Grief Reach grant from the New York Life Foundation to support their Virtual Peer Support Groups, which addresses the needs of bereaved youth and their families.
“We are grateful for the New York Life Foundation’s investment in this program, which will help us build our capacity in order to fulfill our mission,” said Valerie’s House Founder & CEO, Angela Melvin. “This partnership enables our organization to continue supporting the needs of grieving children and their families in our community.”
“For nearly a decade, the New York Life Foundation, through its Grief Reach Grant has provided funding to local organizations that provide support services to bereaved youth. The global pandemic has not only impacted our day to day life but also how we grieve and our access to grief support,” said Maria Collins, Vice President of the New York Life Foundation. “In order to ensure local bereavement nonprofits had the funding they needed to serve a growing population of grieving families; our investment shifted from a traditional funding structure to one that was more flexible to ensure bereavement support is available to all who need it.”
Over 300 Grief Reach grants totaling more than $10 million have been awarded since the program’s inception in 2011. The New York Life Foundation has been one of the leading funders of the childhood bereavement field, investing nearly $55 million to date in support of grieving children and their families.
About the New York Life Foundation
Inspired by New York Life’s tradition of service and humanity, the New York Life Foundation has, since its founding in 1979, provided nearly $360 million in charitable contributions to national and local nonprofit organizations. The Foundation supports programs that benefit young people, particularly in the areas of educational enhancement and childhood bereavement. The Foundation also encourages and facilitates the community involvement of employees and agents of New York Life through its Volunteers for Good and Grief-Sensitive Schools programs. To learn more, please visit www.newyorklifefoundation.org.
About Valerie’s House
As the first and only organization in Southwest Florida with the sole mission of helping children grieve, Valerie’s House has helped more than 1,000 children and their families since opening its doors in 2016. The nonprofit provides a safe, comfortable place to heal following the death of a loved one. Valerie’s House offers support groups and other activities at their home in Fort Myers at 1762 Fowler Street and Naples at 819 Myrtle Terrace. The organization also holds group meetings at First United Methodist Church in Punta Gorda. Valerie’s House is a United Way partner agency and is fully supported by community donations that can be made online at www.valerieshouse.org or by mail to Valerie’s House, Inc., P.O. Box 1955, Fort Myers, FL 33902.
