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Winchester News has been selected as one of 150 nonprofits to receive funding through Cummings Foundation’s annual grant program, which awarded $35 million this year.
Chosen through a competitive review process that drew a record 959 applicants, Winchester News will receive $75,000 over three years.
Winchester News is a digital-only local news source. There is no paywall on the Winchester News website, as the goal is to provide coverage of local news to all residents regardless of their ability to pay. In addition to the website, Winchester News produces an electronic newsletter that goes to over 3,200 inboxes weekly.
Since subscribing to Winchester News is free, we rely heavily on fundraising from individual donors, who give generously throughout the year. Receiving a three-year grant from the Cummings Foundation allows us to keep increasing our coverage of the issues that matter to our readers, and to build a more robust and sustainable financial plan.
This year, the Woburn-based Cummings Foundation increased its annual grant program from $30 million to $35 million and shifted to fully unrestricted funding, allowing recipients to direct grant dollars where they are needed most.
Foundation executive director and trustee Joyce Vyriotes noted the changes reflect growing concerns among Greater Boston nonprofits about rising costs, increased demand for services, and sustained uncertainty around public funding.
“Nonprofit professionals are closest to the challenges facing their communities, making them best positioned to determine where and how new funds will drive the greatest impact,” said Vyriotes. “By providing increased, flexible funding, we hope to strengthen organizations’ long-term stability and help them respond to evolving community needs.”
This year’s grant recipients represent a wide range of causes, including housing and food insecurity, education, workforce development, healthcare, mental health services, social justice, immigrant support, and youth programming.
The annual grant program supports Massachusetts nonprofits that are based in and primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties, as well as Brookline, Dedham, Milton, Needham, Quincy, and Wellesley.
Through this place-based initiative, Cummings Foundation reinvests in the areas where it owns commercial real estate. Its buildings are all managed at no cost to the Foundation by its affiliate, Cummings Properties, a Woburn-based commercial developer that leases and manages 11 million square feet of debt-free space. All rental profits support the Foundation.
Since its founding, Cummings Foundation has awarded more than $650 million to Greater Boston nonprofits. The complete list of this year’s grant recipients, along with additional information about the Foundation and its grant programs, is available at CummingsFoundation.org.
About Winchester News
Winchester News was founded in 2023 by several residents in response to the news desert created by the loss of the town’s former long-time publication. Winchester News provides hyper-local coverage of Winchester town government, athletics and businesses, as well as human-interest stories and community events.
About Cummings Foundation
Woburn-based Cummings Foundation, Inc. was established in 1986 by Joyce and Bill Cummings of Winchester, Mass., and has grown to become one of the largest private foundations in New England.
In addition to its annual grant program, the Foundation directly operates two not-for-profit retirement communities: New Horizons at Marlborough and New Horizons at Choate, in Woburn.
Additional information is available at CummingsFoundation.org.
