KeyBank Foundation's grant will help extremely low-income and unemployed individuals gain career readiness skills and find jobs with advancement opportunities
WHITE PLAINS, NY -- Lifting Up Westchester (LUW), a community-based, social services agency providing life changing support to our Westchester County residents in crisis, announces receipt of a two-year, $200,000 charitable grant from KeyBank Foundation to launch a new Career Center. The Center will take a holistic approach to strengthening people's stability and self-sufficiency. The groundbreaking project will combine a variety of resources that will position LUW to help address a broader set of unique challenges individuals are experiencing in our community - the employment stability and wage advancement of extremely low-income and Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE) individuals and people facing a variety of challenges to employment, housing, and living independently.
"Most people want to work but many have significant barriers to finding job opportunities. Our Center will focus on overcoming these barriers so Westchester residents can get back to work or find employment that better meets their needs. The Center will complement the existing employment programs in Westchester County by providing intense job readiness services that address the high barriers people with extremely low-income face every day, said Anahaita Kotval, LUW Chief Executive Officer. "The Center will provide access to a variety of services in one place that traditionally people have to seek from multiple agencies. For example, it is hard to look for new employment when you don't have interview clothes, or don't have a computer to fill out an application. We will walk hand-in-hand to help individuals get both the employment and the additional support they need for long-term stability. We are grateful that KeyBank shares our vision and has provided the funding to bring this holistic Center to fruition."
With KeyBank's support, LUW will build out a physical career center, hire staff, establish employment partnerships, and work with the Department of Social Services and other social welfare organizations to build a pipeline to targeted populations. Its focus will be on providing job readiness and skills training, individual job coaching, and apprenticeships that lead to higher-paying jobs and employment advancement. The program strives to assist an estimated 175 unemployed and significantly under-employed individuals over KeyBank's two-year funding period.
"KeyBank Foundation is committed to partnering with community organizations whose mission it is to improve the lives of disadvantaged populations in our neighborhoods through education, workforce development, and community investment," said KeyBank Market President John Manginelli. "Employment is key to an individual's and family's financial stability, and we are proud to support Lifting Up Westchester's efforts to break down the employment barriers that many in our community face."
KeyBank Foundation grants are made under Key's National Community Benefits Plan established in 2017, which has already delivered more than $18 billion in lending and investments across Key's national footprint supporting affordable housing and community development projects, home, and small business lending in low- and-moderate income communities, and philanthropic efforts targeted toward education, workforce development, and safe, vital neighborhoods.
About Lifting Up Westchester (LUW)
Lifting Up Westchester is united by one, bold and unwavering belief: that, with the right community support, people of all ages have the potential to build their lives and thrive. When everyone has a solid foundation, it allows them to build more secure and independent futures for themselves and contribute to the wellbeing of the community. Since 1979 we have provided lifelines to help people in crisis that create lasting stability and self-sufficiency by:
Providing emergency shelter, food, and support to keep people safe.
Facilitating employment readiness and job opportunities to increase and sustain income.
Finding safe and affordable homes of all types and providing the support to maintain the stability of that housing.
Coordinating and navigating community resources and overcoming barriers to obtaining unique support.
Offering education and mentoring support to youth so they have a chance to succeed.
About KeyBank/KeyCorp
KeyCorp's roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $190.1 billion on September 30, 2022. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,300 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications, and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.
About KeyBank Foundation:
KeyBank Foundation serves to fulfill KeyBank's purpose to help clients and communities thrive, and its mission is to support organizations and programs that prepare people for thriving futures. The Foundation's mission is advanced through three funding priorities - neighbors, education, and workforce - and through community service. To provide meaningful philanthropy that transforms lives, KeyBank Foundation listens carefully to understand the unique characteristics and needs of its communities and then backs solutions with targeted philanthropic investments. KeyBank Foundation is a nonprofit charitable foundation, funded by KeyCorp.
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LUW Media Contact: Lauren Candela-Katz | lcandela-katz@liftingupwestchester.org | 914-949-3098
KeyBank Media Contact: Karen Crane | karen_crane@keybank.com | 203-789-2752
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