Mercy sisters’ grants aid Albany non-profits

The Sisters of Mercy Northeast Community has awarded $400,000 in grants to nearly 40 non-profit organizations in the northeastern United States in areas the sisters serve, including the Albany Diocese. The grants help people who are poor, including the homeless, Syrian refugees, teenage mothers and college students in need of food and financial aid. The sisters’ Northeast Ministry Fund has given away more than $5 million since 2007.

Organizations in the Diocese receiving grants are all in Albany:

•  Blessed Sacrament food pantry, for personal care items for 750 individuals who seek help each month at the pantry;

•  Sacred Heart Outreach Center, for food for refugees from Syria and elsewhere and to encourage clients to recycle and use the reusable bags the center has been providing since 2016;

•  St. Mary’s Church outreach center, to continue to provide bus passes, clothing and personal care items to people who are homeless and need help getting to medical appointments and jobs;

•  Maria College, for tuition assistance and for food and health and baby items for its food pantry. A college survey found that nearly 50 percent of respondents had experienced food insecurity at least once during a semester, and 18 percent had dealt with it at least five times during a semester;

•  Community Maternity Services, for case management for pregnant and parenting girls and women ages 12 to 21 living in poverty in Warren, Washington, Scho­harie and Otsego Counties; and

•  Family Promise of the Capital Region, to assist families who are homeless, most of whom are single mothers with children or new immigrants.

“These grants are one way of assuring that the work of Mercy continues into the future.” said Sister Maureen Mitchell, Northeast Community president.

(Learn more at www.sistersofmercy.org.)