Community Foundation of Westmoreland County

Stories Archive

Stories

The beauty of collaboration

FUELED BY AN ABUNDANCE OF TEAMWORK, a group of about 30 high school– and college-age students took part in a seven-week program meant to encourage next generation philanthropy. The Youth Philanthropy Internship — a partnership of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, The Heinz Endowments and the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies — brings together young people from across western Pennsylvania to address the most pressing issues in their communities.

Stories

The Collective Power Network

The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County convinced 20 nonprofits to look past daily work demands and band together to build relationships. This year, membership is growing and joint projects have launched.

Stories

Turn Market Gains into Community Good

Giving now while the market is up makes it possible to take an income tax deduction for the full fair market value of shares — and avoid long-term capital gains tax on the appreciation.

Stories

Every Penny Counts

A beneficiary of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County's scholarship program describes how awards help donors honor loved ones while making college more affordable.

Stories

Circling to Uplift

In Westmoreland County, the community foundation is leading giving circles that realize the philanthropic potential of donors and the self-sufficiency potential of those in need.

Stories

Paying it forward

On Sept. 7, 2011, Maggie Elder wrote in her journal, “Today has been a day of 1,000 tears. Today has been a crying day for me, although I’m not sure why… Mom also says those are healing tears and to just let it flow out of me… Tomorrow will be better.”

Stories

From Blight to Beautiful

IN 2013, THERE WERE FEW REGRETS from Latrobe residents when a notorious nuisance bar at the corner of Ligonier and Main streets in the heart of the downtown was destroyed by a fire that officials determined was caused by arson. The dirt-covered lot that lingered for several years afterward served as a constant marker of deterioration in a town struggling to recover from a decades-long recession.