$400,000 also designated for capacity building to support long-term stability of 16 selected organizations
(BUFFALO AND SYRACUSE, NY) The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York has selected 16 nonprofit organizations to receive a total of $1.6 million in funding for general operations through the Strengthening Every Angle (SEA) Change Fund. The SEA Change Fund was launched at the beginning of 2026 to support organizations who are experiencing challenges resulting from drastic changes in public funding over the past year.
The 16 organizations will receive grants of $100,000 each to support general operations, meaning the money does not have to be used for a specific program or service line.
The Health Foundation is dedicating an additional $400,000 in funds to capacity building services for the selected grantees, including individualized coaching and skill development, to strengthen their long-term organizational health.
Over 100 organizations applied for SEA Change, underscoring how many nonprofits need increased support due to recent changes to federal policy and cuts to public funding.
“General operating funds are an essential resource for the long-term strength of nonprofit organizations, especially in the current funding landscape,” said Nora Suric, PhD, President, Health Foundation for Western & Central New York. “The SEA Change Fund is new, but it represents the Health Foundation’s core approach: building trusted relationships with our nonprofit partners so we can pursue big-picture solutions for a healthier community.”
The following organizations will each receive $100,000 plus capacity-building services.
Central New York
Catholic Charities of Herkimer County supports older adults, families with young children, and residents experiencing rural poverty. Services include health insurance counseling, transportation, companionship, respite, and wellness supports for older adults, along with food pantry and emergency assistance for children ages 0–5.
Catholic Charities of Onondaga County provides services across Onondaga County, including emergency assistance, homeless services, supportive housing, refugee services, health care coordination, supports for seniors, parent education, early childhood education, counseling, and a recovery center.
Community Action Program for Madison County serves people across Madison, Herkimer, Oneida, and Chenango Counties, with a focus on low-income women, young children and families, kinship caregivers, older adults, and adults with disabilities. Their programs include Early Head Start, Healthy Families home visiting, access to WIC (Women, Infants and Children nutrition support), and Pathways Community Hub.
Huntington Family Centers’ services in Onondaga, Oswego, and Delaware counties include free preschool, a senior day program offering meals, recreation, wellness activities, outings, and transportation. They offer neighborhood-based support that helps older adults access benefits, including housing, health care, legal support, and other services.
InterFaith Works of Central New York’s service area is focused primarily in Syracuse and Onondaga County, with reach into Oswego, Cayuga, and Madison Counties. Services include refugee resettlement, maternal health, family wellness, case management, job readiness, and healthy aging programs.
Oswego County Opportunities, Inc. reaches pregnant individuals, young children and families, older adults, and others facing poverty and barriers to health, housing, nutrition, and transportation. As the county’s Community Action Agency, OCO operates more than 50 programs, including maternal and infant supports through its home visiting program.
Prevention Network provides direct services and education to prevent substance misuse, training, and coalition support in Onondaga County. Their parenting programs serve pregnant people and parents of young children through evidence-based models that strengthen parenting skills and help families navigate challenges safely.
Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY reaches primarily Onondaga County with additional reach across central New York. Their free civil legal services support children, families, older adults, and caregivers through family law, elder law, housing, eviction defense, immigration, estate planning, and assistance addressing medical debt.
Western New York
ACCORD serves Allegany County with added reach through its Child Care Resource Center. As the county’s Community Action Agency, it supports low-income children and families, older adults, and others facing poverty through Head Start, child care support, food access, housing assistance, and domestic violence services.
Child Care Resource Network supports families across eight western New York counties, centered in Buffalo. Their services reach parents, expectant parents, kinship caregivers, and providers through childcare referrals, enrollment support, healthy meals, lactation support, mental health consultation, and workforce training.
Community Action of Orleans & Genesee provides support to low-income children and families, older adults, and other residents across Orleans and Genesee Counties. As a Community Action Agency, they offer Head Start, child care resource and referral, transportation, weatherization, meals, and food and emergency assistance.
Harmonia Collaborative Care serves primarily rural southern Erie County, with some reach into northern Chautauqua and Cattaraugus Counties. They support older adults, caregivers, and other underserved residents through mental health clinics, senior care coordination, caregiver support, health home services, and school-based mental health programs.
Jewish Family Services of Western New York: Since 1862, Jewish Family Services of Western New York has been providing all members of our community with critical health and human services, regardless of religion, ethnicity, cultural background, gender identification, ability, or age. JFS serves people across Western New York with a focus on Erie and Niagara counties, including families with young children, older adults, refugees and immigrants, those facing housing instability, and others contending with trauma or behavioral health concerns. They offer a suite of community services and behavioral health and wellness programs such as counseling, family support programming, care coordination, Holocaust survivor supports, and more.
Pinnacle Community Services provides support to Niagara County’s low-income children, young parents, survivors of domestic violence, and youth experiencing homelessness. Services include care coordination, domestic violence shelter, parenting support, and emergency and transitional services for homeless and at-risk youth. Because up to 20 percent of homeless youth are pregnant or parenting, these programs are also critical to maternal and infant health.
YWCA Western New York serves Erie County, including young children, school-age youth, women and families living in poverty, and low-income older adults. Services include early childhood education, after-school and summer programs, court-based child care, supportive housing and case management for seniors, and advocacy tied to equity and maternal health.
YWCA Jamestown serves Chautauqua County, including women experiencing homelessness or domestic violence, pregnant and parenting women, young children, and families with low incomes. They provide housing support, early childhood education, supervised visitation, and sexual health education for young mothers. Because many housing clients are pregnant or parenting children ages 0–5, these programs also support maternal and child health and family stability.
About the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York
The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York is an independent, private foundation that advocates for continuous improvement in health and health care for the people and communities of 16 counties in western and central New York. Our vision is a healthy central and western New York where racial and socioeconomic equity are prioritized so all people can reach their full potential and achieve equitable health outcomes. For more information, please visit hfwcny.org.
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