News and Press Releases

The Boston Foundation Awards Research Grant to Hearth

January 11, 2009

BOSTON - "Hearth has been awarded a grant of $65,000 by the Boston Foundation," Mark Hinderlie, Hearth's President and CEO, said today.

According to Hinderlie, the grant will be used to conduct an assessment of Hearth's approach to housing formerly homeless elders and to make recommendations for improving public policy and funding priorities for this most vulnerable population. In partnership with researchers from Boston University's School of Social Work, and with a Policy Advisory Panel including leaders in the homelessness arena, Hearth will use this grant as part of its initiative to end homelessness among Massachusetts elders.

"Our organization has brought the issue of elder homelessness into the spotlight during its 17 years of operation," Hinderlie said. "This grant from the Boston Foundation will enable us to demonstrate clearly that providing homeless elders with permanent homes not only results in better outcomes in terms of health and well-being, but also costs the public less than ignoring the problem."

Hearth was founded as the Committee to End Elder homelessness in 1991, and has provided or helped to find homes for over 1,250 of Boston-area elders.  Mary S. Parker serves as chairperson of the board of directors.

The Boston Foundation, one of the nation's leading community foundations, uses its endowment of close to $900 million to support critically important organizations and institutions, and to provide civic leadership as a convener and sponsor of special initiatives designed to build community. Last year, the Foundation made grants of more than $90 million to nonprofit organizations and received gifts of $90 million. The Boston Foundation is made up nearly 900 separate charitable funds, which have been established by donors either for the general benefit of the community or for special purposes. 

"This grant shows once again the Boston Foundation's willingness to partner effectively with small grass-roots agencies like Hearth, as easily as it does with major institutions and corporations, to address critical community issues such as the tragic but solvable problem of elder homelessness," Hinderlie said.  "Support from the Boston Foundation makes this important project possible and we are grateful for this recognition of our work."