We are neighbors helping neighbors in times of hardship
The Community Needs Fund pools money from people like you to make a big impact on the critical needs of New Yorkers. Right now we are helping communities recover and tackle challenges that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. A gift to the Community Needs Fund is an easy and powerful way to help dozens of organizations doing good locally. We welcome contributions of all sizes.
With your help, we can say “Yes!” to more projects making life better in New York.
Four Easy Ways to Give
- By credit card: (at right).
- Send a check: Make it out to Community Funds, Inc. Please write “Community Needs Fund” on the memo line. Mail it to P.O. Box 22472, New York, NY 10087.
- Transfer your gift: If you have a donor-advised fund, you can transfer a gift from your fund. If you use MyNYCT, look for the “Community Needs Fund” tab.
- Give from your IRA: Under the “charitable IRA rollover” provision, donors aged 70 and a half or older may direct contributions from an IRA to our Community Needs Fund, excluding them from taxable income (up to $100,000), and counting them towards the required minimum distribution. As the provision excludes contributions to donor-advised funds or private foundations, this is a great way to take advantage of this tax benefit while supporting local nonprofits.
- Don’t forget to check if your employer makes matching gifts! Some companies will double or triple your contribution, increasing the impact of your gift.
The Trust draws upon its decades of experience and the expertise of its grantmaking staff to identify nonprofits responding to this unprecedented chapter in the city’s history. Your support is helping the city come back stronger and also helping to sustain critical programs between times of emergency, so that when we’re faced with another disaster, we can rapidly respond and deploy resources. Through the Community Needs Fund, New Yorkers like you have helped:
PROVIDE HUNGER RELIEF: Grants to City Harvest, the Food Bank for New York City, and the Metropolitan Council are expanding their food storage capacity and distribution networks to alleviate growing food insecurity in the city.
IMPROVE MENTAL HEALTH CARE: New York School-Based Health Foundation is working to enhance mental health services in the city’s public school system.
SUSTAIN LOCAL BUSINESS: Local Initiatives Support Corporation and Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation are helping vulnerable small businesses in the city recover from the economic disruption brought on by the pandemic.
TRAIN AND PROTECT WORKERS: Catholic Charities Community Services is training day laborers to expand their skill sets and defend their rights—helping them fight wage theft and dangerous working conditions.
FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE: A grant to Clean Energy Group replaced power plants in the city that are used to meet peak energy demand with cleaner alternatives.
SUPPORT DIGITAL EQUITY: Community Tech NY is helping low-income communities of color secure better internet access, and THE POINT Community Development Corporation is expanding access to high-speed internet in the South Bronx.
BOLSTER THE ARTS: A grant to The Field is providing financial planning and other services for artists and performers as they get back on their feet following widespread closures in the sector.
PRESERVE GREEN SPACE: The Bronx is Blooming is supporting the stewardship of street trees, community gardens, and other green spaces in the Bronx, which help lower street-level temperatures and improve air quality.
