The CREC Cares Season of Giving

All month long, leading up to Giving Tuesday, the CREC Foundation has been doing a big internal push for donations to our CREC Cares Fund. CREC Cares is our employee directed giving program intended to support the emergency and immediate needs of CREC community members, including staff, teachers, students, and families who have experienced a catastrophic incident that has caused serious economic hardship.The public can donate to CREC Cares, www.crec.org/cares, or the CREC Foundation in general, www.crec.org/foundationWe’ve been sending a series of videos for the campaign. You can see them all in this YouTube Playlist Capitol Region Education Council Foundation, (CREC Foundation was established in 2005 to support CREC's programs, missions, and its members. The Foundation helps achieve this goal by:

• Providing financial support for CREC educational programs and services
• Developing strategic partnerships with other community organizations that help promote and advance CREC's educational initiatives
• Supporting teachers and educational leaders by helping fund programs that build and strengthen skills and abilities
• Seeking funds for innovative and highly progressive educational programming to meets the needs of a diverse student population
• Acquiring school and classroom resources for teachers and students
• Obtaining scholarship funds for disadvantaged students
• Assisting families by securing support for programs that improve adult literacy, workforce preparedness, and job training.

The CREC Foundation exists exclusively for charitable purposes and is funded by private gifts from individuals and organizations. In addition, the Foundation hosts or participates in fundraising events. As a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization it is governed by a board of directors who support the Foundation's mission.

Food Insecurity

This year, they are volunteering at Foodshare's Rentschler Field distribution center, they have assembled 6 Thanksgiving boxes with all the food and gift cards a family needs to celebrate Thanksgiving, and they have a food pantry.

How You Can Help

Make a GiftEvery gift makes a difference. Whether small or large, your donation to the CREC Foundation contributes to CREC's overall mission of improving the quality of public education for all learners. The CREC Foundation is thankful for the generosity of friends foundations and businesses.A monetary gift is the most common way to give to the CREC Foundation.To make a convenient and secure credit card donation with PayPal, simply click below.Donate

Alternatively, checks may be mailed to:The CREC FoundationAttn: Grants and Development Office111 Charter Oak AvenueHartford, CT 06106When giving a donation, please let us know if there is a particular program or initiative that you would like the funds to support. Please also let us know if the contribution is being made in memory or honor of someone, and provide us with a name and an address where we can send a letter of notification for the memorial or honorary donation.The CREC Foundation is committed to ensuring CREC schools, programming and services have access to state of the art learning and instructional resources. It will gladly accept in-kind donations of equipment and goods to help attain that goal. The Foundation also welcomes gifts in the form of stock, real estate, or bequests and recommends that you seek advice from your attorney or financial advisor regarding any non-cash donation you would like to make to the Foundation.If you would like to discuss the Foundation's giving options or if you would simply like to learn more about the CREC Foundation and the good work it is doing for public education, please contact Darlene Wolliston at (860) 240-6668 or dwolliston@crec.org.

CREC Cares FundFor staff, CREC isn't just a workplace, it's a community. And in times of crisis, a community offers support. The CREC Cares Fund is a unique employee directed giving program that is intended to support the emergency and immediate needs of CREC community members, including staff, teachers, students, and families who have experienced a catastrophic incident that has caused serious economic hardship.Each year, employee contributions towards this fund will be used to provide aid to students, families, and other CREC community members who have experienced an emergency, disaster, or some other personal or financial hardship.

Situations that may qualify for assistance include:

• Accident or illness
• Death of an immediate family member
• Natural disaster (flood, tornado, etc.)
• Critical incidents (fire, theft, etc.) that cause a dramatic disruption in income or loss of primary residence

To contribute towards this fund, employees can direct their donations throughout the year via the CREC Foundation. While the focus is on CREC employees helping each other, the fund will accept donations from sources outside of CREC as well.Decisions regarding the use of funds will be directed by the Executive Director on the basis of financial need, severity, and impact of the emergency on the CREC community member and availability of funds.