Finding a steady job that pays well is a challenge.
And for individuals who have been released from jail it can be almost impossible.
There are many obstacles facing people who want to leave prison behind them and move ahead, but they often lack job skills.
That is where the Lawrenceville Job Training Partnership steps in. Through a 14-week program, it teaches ex-offenders culinary skills so they can find a job. It also teaches life skills such as financial literacy, computer skills and goal-setting.
To help the partnership succeed in its mission, the Princeton Area Community Foundation and the Burke Foundation awarded a $10,000 grant to the non-profit group during a recent grant award cycle.
The Lawrenceville Job Training Partnership is one of several nonprofit groups based in Princeton, Lawrence Township and Hightstown that have been awarded grants by the Princeton Area Community Foundation (pacf.org) and the Burke Foundation (burkefoundation.org).
The two foundations teamed up to increase the amount of money that can be awarded. Together, they awarded more than $600,000 to 16 nonprofit groups in Mercer and Burlington counties, including nonprofit groups with ties to Princeton, Lawrence Township and Hightstown.
Among the grant recipients were Trinity Counseling Services and Volunteer Connect in Princeton. The Lawrenceville Job Training Partnership, Womanspace and Prevention Education Inc., all based in Lawrence Township, also received grants.
Better Beginnings Child Development Center, which is in Hightstown and serves Hightstown and East Windsor, was awarded a grant.
The other grant recipients were Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mercer County, which operates a program in the East Windsor Regional School District, and Mercer County Meals on Wheels, which serves meals to individuals in many Mercer County towns.
“We know the needs in our community are significant. We received 64 requests for funding,” said Jeffrey M. Vega, president and chief operating officer of the Princeton Area Community Foundation. Of those 64 requests, 16 nonprofit groups received grants.
James Burke, president of the Burke Foundation, said the foundation was “thrilled” to become partners with the Princeton Area Community Foundation so it can deepen its support for nonprofit groups that help low-income households and communities.
Trinity Counseling Services received a $50,000 grant for its Childhood Intervention Initiative. The program provides under-served children and their families with personalized mental health counseling. Children are referred by school guidance counselors and child study teams. There is no fee if the child is eligible for a free or reduced price lunch.
Children with emotional or behavioral challenges are treated with their family members to improve overall functioning in the family, school and life. The program is available to children who attend the Princeton Nursery School, the Princeton Public Schools, the Cranbury Public School and the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District.
Volunteer Connect was awarded $50,000 to continue its work partnering with nonprofits, businesses and individuals to develop more effective nonprofit boards. It also works to recruit skilled volunteers to help the nonprofits with projects, and provides workshops for nonprofit leaders.
Prevention Education Inc., also known as PEI Kids, received a $36,500 grant. PEI Kids offers programs that reach more than 13,500 children ages 3 to 16, plus parents and school staff, in every municipality in Mercer County.
PEI Kids programs are focused on personal safety, child sexual abuse prevention and counseling, school safety and bullying, anger management, juvenile intervention and gang prevention, and support services for children in foster care.
Womanspace received a $50,000 grant. The organization provides support services for women, children and men who are victims of domestic violence. Womanspace offers counseling to victims on a family, group or individual basis.
Since Womanspace was founded in the late 1970s, it has helped more than 71,000 women, 13,000 children and 5,000 men who have been victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
The Better Beginnings Child Development Center in Hightstown was awarded a $25,000 grant. The child care center provides high quality, affordable child care for working parents in the Hightstown-East Windsor area.
Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Mercer County was presented with a $42,270 grant to expand a mentoring program that pairs a Hightstown High School student with an elementary school pupil in the East Windsor Regional School District.
Meals on Wheels of Mercer County was awarded $40,000 for its subsidized meals program to serve home-bound clients who cannot afford the traditional Meals on Wheels fees.
Meals on Wheels volunteers deliver a hot meal and a cold meal on weekdays, among other services. Its clients live in Lawrence, East Windsor, West Windsor and Ewing townships, Princeton, Hightstown, Trenton and some areas in Hamilton Township.