Recently, the Executive Director of the Portiuncula Foundation, Natalie Kasievich, took the time to lead our office in a presentation about their organization, which covered everything from the correct pronunciation of their name (PORT-ZEE-OONK-OOO-LAH) to a grant-writing Q&A. Here’s what we learned!

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  1. Member Highlight: The Portiuncula Foundation

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    This month we are thrilled to highlight an organizational member of The Global Switchboard, the Portiuncula Foundation. Recently, the Executive Director of the Portiuncula Foundation, Natalie Kasievich, took the time to lead our office in a presentation about their organization, which covered everything from the correct pronunciation of their name (PORT-ZEE-OONK-OOO-LAH) to a grant-writing Q&A.

    Here’s what we learned!

    Organization and History

    The Portiuncula Foundation is a grant-giving organization that’s advancing a broad vision of health and well-being through ‘little portions’ granted to organizations making a big impact. Their name, Portiuncula, is derived from the Italian word Porziuncula, meaning ‘little portion’, also the name of a tiny church dear to St. Francis and the early friars. The name represents the ‘Little Portion’ that God has given to the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities, of which the foundation is a part, to help further their work in collaboration with others.

    Founded in 2003, the Portiuncula Foundation supports efforts to advance health and well-being in the communities where the Sisters of St. Francis live and work. The foundation manages the restricted gifts and charitable funds formerly held at the Pittsburgh-based St. Francis Health Foundation, St. Francis Hospital of New Castle, and St. Francis Medical Center in a manner in keeping with the original intent of the donors. With their wishes in mind the Portiuncula Foundation strives to allocate these funds in accordance with these guiding principles:

    1. Promote programs that address root causes of poverty or focus on systemic change as well as empower the marginalized, especially women and children.
    2. Endorse initiatives that advance health, wellness, and education.
    3. Act as responsible and just stewards of the charitable fund in conformity with the ethical and social teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.
    4. Champion a broad vision of health that includes spiritual, emotional, physical, social, and economic wellbeing.
    5. Encourage collaborative efforts.

    The Portiuncula Foundation provides grants up to $15,000 to not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organizations within Western Pennsylvania and in areas where the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities minister. The Foundation awards grants to projects that align with their organizational principles, these often fall under the following focus categories: education, environment, health care, social services, care for asylum seekers, and care of the elderly, dying, and homeless. 

    Funding and Grant Process

    In keeping with their namesake, Portiuncula seeks applicants who can make their ‘little portion’ go a long way by using any money awarded to reach specific, quantifiable goals. This means making intentful use of every dollar and only asking for what is necessary for the project when applying. Some of Natalie’s other grant application tips included clear concise language, thoughtful formatting, the inclusion of carefully-selected additional materials, and of course, plenty of research beforehand! 

    If you’re interested in applying for a Portiuncula grant, check out past awardees here to get a sense of the kind of projects they’re looking for, and learn more about the grant process and timeline on their website here. 

    Thank you Natalie for taking the time to teach us a little more about your organization and for giving us some insight on grant-writing from the perspective of a grantor!

  2. Amizade Launches Hill District Global Engagement Coalition

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    For the past 25 years, Amizade has provided global service learning opportunities to more than 12,000 people in 12 countries which span four continents. This January, they launched the Hill District Global Engagement Coalition.

    Earlier this fall, Hill District community leaders selected 30 student ambassadors from high schools in the Hill District to participate in the nine-month program which will allow each student to participate in service learning in both Pittsburgh and in an Amizade site abroad. Amizade hopes interaction between student ambassadors and their host country communities will have a positive impact on the students and that they will return home wanting to share their experience with the larger Hill District community.

    Students who have access to global education have demonstrated improved academic achievement, increased civic engagement, and better employment opportunities in their future. The Global Engagement Coalition aims to minimize this inequity by providing global service learning opportunities to high school students in the Hill District who wouldn’t otherwise have access to international experiences.

    Ambassadors are meeting with their partner organization once a month to workshop skills such as peer mediation and project management and to learn about the history of colonization and slavery. By September, each cohort of students is expected to have planned and implemented their community service project in the Hill District.

    “Helping young black youth starts with helping them identify their history”

    -Tyisha Burroughs, Equity and Inclusion Program Manager for Amizade

    Because there often is a lack of black history education in schools, many black students have to strengthen their identity and understanding of their ancestral history elsewhere. The Hill District Global Engagement Coalition aims to bridge the gap in education by sending students to countries in which people were colonized, enslaved, and brought to countries such as the United States.

    To help them carry out this project, Amizade has enlisted the help of three Hill District organizations — Ujamaa Collective, Reaching Back, and Center that CARES — each of which is sharing their organization’s mission and approach to community engagement with 10 students on the program. This June, students will travel to Ghana, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago (respectively) for 7-10 days with two staff from their partner organization, an Amizade staff member, and the other ambassadors in their cohort.

    • Student ambassadors paired with Ujamaa Collective in Amizade’s Hill District Global Engagement Coalition prepare hand made shea butter body products to raise funds for their trip to Ghana.

    Ambassadors traveling to Ghana will visit the ‘Door of No Return’ which was the last sight of Africa for many people who were enslaved and forced out of their country on ships. Whereas students traveling to Jamaica and Trinidad will visit the ports of entry that enslaved people went through upon their arrival.

    Amizade hopes student ambassadors will develop an appreciation for their ancestral history and black identity as well as a deepened understanding of colonization and slavery, and the way in which their harmful legacies continue to affect the world today.

    Getting funding for the Hill District Global Engagement Coalition was a process that spanned several years. Amizade has not yet obtained funding for their 2020 cohort of students, but they hope to partner with more organizations, double the project’s reach to 60 students, and expand the scope of the project by adding the neighborhoods of Westinghouse and Homewood. If you are interested in supporting the Hill District Global Engagement Coalition or Amizade’s other initiatives, click here.

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    This post was produced through an interview with Amizade’s Tyisha Burroughs and was written by Anna Bongardino, a Spring 2019 intern for The Global Switchboard.