Dec. 20, 2007 — FirstBank put the merry into Christmas for six local non-profit organizations on Thursday, five of which received $2,000 each from the bank's Neighborhood Grant Program. One agency received two grants.
The funds were given out in a ceremony at the new Crown Bay branch as it hosted a Business After Hours reception sponsored by the St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce.
The Family Resource Center, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church and two programs under the Virgin Islands Housing Authority were the St. Thomas recipients. Friends of the V.I. National Park, St. Ursula's Anglican Church and the Episcopal Diocese of the V.I.'s Multi-Purpose Center were the recipients on St. John.
"People expect corporations to participate and assist in the community," explained FirstBank Sr. Vice President Joseph Hosie. "It's important morally, and our staff members themselves take pride that the corporation they serve is serving the community."
Hosie said FirstBank has given out more than $1 million to support the community since its inception in 2002, $175,000 of that in the form of neighborhood grants. The program primarily funds organizations that support low-income families, children and the elderly, said FirstBank Marketing Officer Sadie Taylor-Clendinen.
Clarence Scipio, the director of the Multi-Purpose Center at St. Ursula's Anglican Church, said his group will use the money to support anti-drug programs on St. John, as well as to help needy seniors make repairs to their homes. He said the center is a resource for legal advice, employment opportunities and foster grandparent opportunities for seniors, as well as other programs, including serving nearly 30,000 lunches to the needy between October 2006 and September 2007.
The church itself also received a grant to start a steel pan band for St. John children, regardless of whether they are church members.
"We got the steel pans donated out of Trinidad," said Cleamena Hodge-Duncan, a senior warden at St. Ursula's. "Now we need to hire an instructor and buy some sticks and pan holders."
Other projects supported by the funds are: eco-camps for a hands-on science program for children 8 to 14 years old through the Friends of the V.I. National Park; monthly community health screenings for high blood pressure and diabetes through St. Andrew's Episcopal Church; the Virgin Islands Victim Advocate outreach program through the Family Resource Center; the Career Help and Money Management Program in Bovoni to assist residents in improving their economic conditions; and the Youth Build Program to help young adults rebuild their communities while learning marketable skills.
The latter two each received a grant and are both programs of the V.I. Housing Authority.
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