$500,000 awarded to eastern North Carolina nonprofit programs | Eastern North Carolina Now

Press Release:

    Oct. 20, 2022     The North Carolina Community Foundation has awarded $500,000 in grants across eastern North Carolina from the Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment.

    This is the fifth annual competitive cycle from the endowment, which supports nonprofit programs focusing on education, health, and human services in 41 eastern North Carolina counties.

    The 15 grants awarded range from $25,000 to $45,000. This year the endowment awarded:

• $25,000 to A Safe Place (The Centre of Redemption) for general operating support. A Safe Place provides safe emergency housing to victims of trafficking/exploitation alongside comprehensive support services.
• $25,000 to Children's Cancer Partners of the Carolinas for the Eastern North Carolina Childhood Cancer Safety Net to provide treatment, travel, lodging, meals and essential homecare to 350 children in a 41-county area.
• $37,500 to Coastal Women's Shelter, Inc. for operational support, relocation assistance and therapy services for victims of domestic violence.
• $25,000 to Diaper Bank of NC for providing free diapers, period products and adult incontinence supplies to low‐income women, children and seniors experiencing hygiene need in the Lower Cape Fear region, in partnership with local social service agencies.
• $45,000 to Duplin Medical Association Inc. for general operating support to provide essential health care for patients.
• $30,000 to Families First, Inc. for general operating support. Families First provides shelter and services to adult and child survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault through trauma informed care and prevention.
• $37,500 to Fayetteville Justice For Our Neighbors for general operating support. JFON provides low‐to‐no‐cost legal services to immigrants and their families and advocates for them through outreach, education and events.
• $45,000 to Feast Down East for Farmers Fighting Hunger. FDE serves 30 farmers from 12 counties in the Cape Fear region, 11 of whom are people of color; 100 wholesale customers; and 10 underserved neighborhoods in New Hanover County.
• $37,500 to Hill Family Farm Education Center for strengthening youth enrichment through on‐farm experiential learning and recreation opportunities and enhancing community food access in Edgecombe County.
• $45,000 to Hope Clinic for expanding services to meet the health care needs of patients who are underserved.
• $33,250 to OBX Room in the Inn for meeting the rising needs of homeless adults through emergency shelter, transitional housing and support services.
• $25,000 to Prevent Blindness North Carolina for providing free on-site vision screenings to preschoolers in southeastern NC counties and assisting children who are in financial need with access to vision care.
• $31,000 to Rones Chapel Area Community Center (RCACC) for Tutor to the Top, a K‐12 after-school tutoring program to motivate youth to graduate and succeed.
• $25,000 to Teach For America - Eastern North Carolina for recruiting promising leaders to teach for at least two years in a low‐income school, developing and cultivating leadership skills and mindsets necessary for systems change.
• $33,250 to Waccamaw Siouan Indian Tribe for indigenous leadership education and entrepreneurship to deepen youth leadership skills and cultivate a renewed sense of power over their futures.

    "The support that we've received from the Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment will allow us to continue to provide life-changing resources for immigrants throughout NC via free and low-cost legal services, advocacy and education," said Brandy A. McPherson, executive director of Fayetteville Justice For Our Neighbors. "This award will help increase our capacity, reach and impact in 2023."

    "With this generous support, we will be able to provide clean, dry diapers to 2,000 babies, supply period products in schools so that students do not have to choose between going to class and having their period and ensure that senior citizens have the dignity items they need," said Michelle Old, CEO and founder of Diaper Bank of North Carolina. "When foundations team up with local family support organizations, significant needs can be met."

    The Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment was established at the North Carolina Community Foundation in 2015. Grants have been made to Burevitch's designated nonprofits since then. The competitive grants program began in 2018 and has awarded a total of $2.5 million in an effort to improve the communities of eastern NC and the lives of people who live in them.

    "Mrs. B," as Burevitch was known to her friends, was a Wilmington native whose generosity was well-known in southeastern North Carolina and beyond. Burevitch passed away in September 2014, leaving behind a fortune that few knew she possessed. Her charitable giving was motivated by her generous nature and concern for the welfare of people and animals. Learn more about her philanthropy.

    "The generous legacy of Lousie Oriole Burevitch is a wonderful example of the long-lasting impact of philanthropy through an endowment," said Jennifer Tolle Whiteside, President & CEO of the North Carolina Community Foundation. "She cared about the well-being of eastern North Carolina's communities and we are grateful to be carrying out her wishes to provide support for generations to come."


   Contact: Amy Dominello Braun
   Senior Communications & Marketing Officer for the North Carolina Community Foundation
   Email: abraun@nccommunityfoundation.org
   Phone: 919-256-6922