Ralph C. Wilson Jr.'s legacy lives on in 55 area organizations that will receive more than $1 million in grants from endowment funds created after the former Buffalo Bills owner died.
The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation created the Legacy Funds at the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo to provide support to areas that were important to Wilson: caregivers, community assets, design and access and youth sports.
“The organizations receiving awards through the 2018 grant process reflect Mr. Wilson’s legacy – one of a commitment to philanthropy, innovation, collaboration and the communities he cared deeply about," said Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker, president and CEO of the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo.
Wilson was 95 when he died in 2014.
The following grants were awarded through an open, competitive process:
Caregivers
• Brian Moorman’s P.U.N.T. Foundation, $10,000
• Alzheimer’s Association, Western New York Chapter, $15,500
• Boys & Girls Clubs of the Northtowns, $10,000
• Catholic Charities of Buffalo, $25,000
• Chautauqua Adult Day Care Centers, Inc., $10,500
• Child & Family Services, $11,836
• Cradle Beach, $12,500
• Healthy Community Alliance, Inc., $25,000
• Hillside Children’s Foundation, $25,000
• Hunter’s Hope Foundation, $25,000
• Mental Health Association of Erie County, Inc., $23,132
• Mercy Hospital Foundation, $21,000
• People, Inc., $22,840
• Southern Tier Health Care System, Inc., $25,000
Community Assets
• Ballet Artists of WNY, Inc. (Neglia Ballet,) $10,000
• Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park, $16,165
• Buffalo History Museum, $10,000
• Buffalo String Works, $18,517
• CEPA Gallery, $10,000
• Community Music School of Buffalo, $7,650
• Explore Buffalo, $18,768
• King Urban Life Center, $10,000
• Peace of the City, $21,000
• Richardson Center Corp., $25,000
• The Buffalo Zoo, $15,750
Design and Access
• Buffalo Lighthouse Association, $50,000
• Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper, $30,000
• Camp Puzzle Peace, $46,000
• Forest Lawn Heritage Foundation, $50,000
• Hamburg Natural History Society, Inc., $15,500
• Houghton College, $29,306
• Town of Sheridan (via Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation), $22,000
• Western New York Land Conservancy, $50,000
Youth Sports
• Algonquin Sports for Kids, Inc., $23,500
• BestSelf Behavioral Health, Inc., $25,000
• Buffalo City Swim Racers Inc., $15,458
• Buffalo Olmstead Parks Conservancy, $21,315
• Chautauqua Striders, $9,611
• Community Support Group of Southwestern New York, $24,206
• Cradle Beach, $10,000
• Daemen College, $25,000
• Dominik Hasek Youth Hockey League Inc., $10,000
• D’Youville College, $25,000
• Genesee YMCA, $11,000
• Jamestown Audubon Society, Inc., $13,000
• Mason’s Mission Foundation, $10,000
• Motor MVB Foundation, Inc., $12,500
• NativityMiguel Middle School of Buffalo, $10,000
• Nor-Ton Red Jacket Club, Inc., $11,200
• Rural Outreach Center, $15,000
• SABAH, Inc., $18,210
• The Miracle League of Western New York, $10,000
• University District Community Development Association, $15,000
• Victory Sports Global Outreach, Inc., $10,000
• Westside International Soccer, Inc., $25,000