The Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation (NCCF) is currently accepting applications for the Reverend Clifford K. Cliver and Lucy Cliver Sumsky Scholarship. Reverend Cliver established this scholarship in 2015 to provide higher education financial assistance to adults who spent time in the foster care system as a child.
"Growing up as foster children, my late sister Lucy and I experienced firsthand those children in foster care must rely on the kindness and compassion of those in our community," said Rev. Cliver. "Together, we wanted to increase the resources given to students who have been in foster care as it is vital to their well-being and improving their opportunities." Rev. Cliver created this scholarship to help these individuals reach their potential by empowering them with educational skills and the tools they need to succeed. In Chautauqua County today, more than 100 children are living in foster care.
The Reverend Clifford K. Cliver and Lucy Cliver Sumsky Scholarship is awarded annually without regard to the student's financial circumstances. Eligibility requirements are: students must be 17 or older; spent time in foster care during any period in their youth; currently attending (or have been accepted at) a university, college, or trade school; and a graduate from a school district within Chautauqua County.
To download an application and learn more about this scholarship, visit the NCCF website, www.nccfoundation.org/cliver-scholarship. You can also contact the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation by phone at 716-366-4892 or e-mail at vhowell@nccfoundation.org.
Return completed application with the essay by April 1, 2021, to NCCF, 212 Lake Shore Drive West, Dunkirk, NY 14048, or by fax to 716-366-3905.
The NCCF, incorporated in 1986, is a tax-exempt charitable organization. Since its establishment, the NCCF has distributed more than $17 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, visit www.nccfoundation.org or call 716-366-4892.