“Grant Seeking Basics” training, sponsored by Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation in conjunction with the Chautauqua Cattaraugus Library System and Patterson Library, was held at the Patterson Library in Westfield on Wednesday, October 5.

As community needs increase, nonprofits are looking at additional funding for essential programs. The 23 participants attending this training represented 18 regional nonprofit organizations.

“Utilizing the Foundation Directory Online Database” was presented by Megan Disbro, Software Training and Web Specialist Librarian from the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System. Participants were given hands-on training in searching this database of over 100,000 U.S. foundations and corporate donors for available grant sources specific to their organization’s needs and geographic area. “Good basic program” was Valerie Champlin’s enthusiastic response to the overall training. Valerie is an educational consultant involved in grant writing for various organizations.

Professional grant writer Sherry Lantz conducted “Grant Writing Basic’ training. She shared useful tools on how to successfully write a grant proposal. The workshop covered the basic concept of grant writing, the process, terminology and the most acceptable format. Participant Beth Starks found the program “very comprehensive,” while others described the training as “hands on,” “very informative” and a “great training for someone with little experience in grant writing.”

The NCCF hosts annual grant writing training and Foundation Online Data Base training for nonprofit organizations. Upcoming programs in 2012 include an Intermediate Grants Training in the spring. 

The NCCF was incorporated in 1986 as a tax-exempt charitable organization. Since its establishment, the NCCF has distributed more than $8.3 million in the community through its various grant programs. It is an organization inherently committed to enriching the northern Chautauqua community and encouraging local philanthropy. For more information on the NCCF,  call 366-4892.