Cornerstone Bank announced its donations in 2023 totaled $506,475, benefitting 169 organizations, events and services in Central Massachusetts.
“We have long supported initiatives important to our community, our team, and our customers,” said Cornerstone Bank CEO Todd Tallman. “In 2023, we had another successful and meaningful year of giving back to the communities we serve, both in terms of financial support and time.”
A sampling of the donations Cornerstone made in 2023 includes:
- $50,000 for the Worcester Community Action Council home heating assistance program
- $36,483.60 (Cornerstone’s match of employee donations) for the United Way of South Central Massachusetts, supporting its vital community programs
- $25,000 to the Center of Hope Foundation in Southbridge—the first year of Cornerstone’s five-year total pledge of $125,000 to upgrade and expand the facilities
- $25,000 to support programs and services at the YMCA of Central Massachusetts, including The Achievers, Numbers in the Sun, LIVESTRONG and What’s for Dinner
- $25,000 to Our Bright Future Inc. in Southbridge, committed to empowering children and developing future leaders through science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) initiatives
- $15,000 to UMass Memorial Health for its nutrition-focused “Food is Medicine” program, which aims to provide higher-risk patients with access to healthy food options
- $15,000 to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Mass & Metrowest to support the organization’s 60th Anniversary Big Celebration and its Golf Fore Kids event
- $12,500 to the EcoTarium in Worcester. This was the first of Cornerstone’s two-year pledge of $25,000 for construction of a traveling exhibit and redevelopment of its early learning play area
- $12,500 to the Bridge of Faith Youth Center in Southbridge. This was the first of Cornerstone’s two-year pledge of $25,000 to support the organization’s mission
Cornerstone also provided $40,000 in scholarships to 16 local high school seniors with plans to pursue studies in business and finance, and held community-engagement events such as its “Stuff the Bus” school supply drive benefitting the Planting the Seed Foundation of Worcester.
Throughout 2023, Cornerstone held 204 financial literacy programs, up from 114 in 2022, for children, teens, adults and seniors throughout the area, donating a total of 568 hours. Cornerstone Bank also offers employees a “volunteer day” benefit through which they can spend a paid workday volunteering for a local non-profit. In 2023, 73 employees participated for a total of 498 hours, working with groups such as the United Way, Relay for Life, Community Harvest Project, Jacob Edwards Library and Habitat for Humanity.
In September, Cornerstone Bank received the Corporate Citizen Award and was honored among the most charitable companies in Massachusetts by the Boston Business Journal. In April, the bank received the Community Award from the Planting the Seed Foundation, which recognized Cornerstone’s commitment to homeless children and their families.
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