Emerson Hospital boosts nonprofits

Eighteen nonprofits across Middlesex County are receiving some money from a local hospital that helps expand their services and help residents in the area address physical and mental health needs.

Emerson Hospital announced the recipients of its first Community Benefit Awards earlier this week, providing up to $5,000 for 18 nonprofit organizations across Middlesex County. Each nonprofit — spanning from Harvard and Concord to Westford

and Sudbury — will receive up to $5,000, according to a news release from the hospital.

The organizations were chosen based on Emerson’s most recent “Community Health Needs Assessment” and address at least one of the following populations or health issues: At-risk adolescents, older adults, cancer prevention and care, mental health or domestic violence, the release stated.

“These organizations are working hard to improve the health of their communities through impactful programs and education,” Senior Vice President of Planning at Emerson Hospital Christine Gallery stated in the release. “A vital part of Emerson’s mission is to serve the health needs of everyone in the region. We are pleased to partner with local organizations that are intrinsic to our mission and are making a deeply positive impact on people’s lives.”

Local nonprofits in The Sun’s coverage area that received funding included Littleton’s Reuben Hoar Library and the Live for Liv nonprofit in Westford that addresses domestic violence.

“It’s a great day and a day to remember my daughter,” Jody Marchand told The Sun in July about the Live for Liv nonprofit, which holds an annual fundraising raise in the summer in memory of her daughter Olivia.

Marchand hosts the event every year after she was shot twice by a 9mm pistol wielded by her then-husband Brian Marchand, who also fatally shot her daughter Olivia before taking his own life in 2010.

One bullet grazed Jody’s face; another shot through her jaw and stopped in her shoulder.

“But it’s also about helping others,” she said about the annual event.

In regards to the Reuben Hoar Library, residents passed an article, 641-93, at fall Town Meeting to fund the remodeling of the longtime library. The money received from Emerson Hospital will go toward providing a safe space for people of all ages to engage in learning, programming and socialization, the news release said.

The remodel — which is projected to be two floors and provide more conference rooms and be American with Disabilities Act-complaint — also received a financial boost earlier this summer when the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners awarded a $5.8 million provisional construction grant to the town.

“Simply put, the library has outgrown the space we currently occupy,” Littleton High School teacher Susan Harvey said during fall Town Meeting. “We need an ADA, accessible library so all patrons can better access the services in the library.”

The following local organizations were among those selected by Emerson Hospital:

— Acton Health Department to help children and families manage anxiety disorders (Acton);

— Center for Parents and Teachers to improve youth behavioral health through parent education (Concord);

— Concord Prison to provide a public health speaker series for inmates (Concord);

— Concord Promise to foster healthy technology use for tweens and teens (Concord);

— Discovery Museum to provide reduced admission rates (Acton);

— Gaining Ground to grow and donate organic produce for emergency food programs (Concord);

— Littleton Community Farm to enhance its garden fresh food donation program (Littleton);

— Littleton Elder and Human Services to offer dementia care and caregiver stress reduction programs (Littleton);

— Minuteman Senior Services to offer healthy living workshops for caregivers and adults with chronic conditions (Bedford);

— Westford Council on Aging to increase transportation options and provide an Aging Mastery program ( Westford)

— Westford Parent Connection to support the 2020 speaker series on youth mental health ( Westford).