The Power of Impact

The Power of Impact is boundless.

It is reflected both in the continued engagement of our members furthering the cause of our Grantees (“The Ripple Effect”) and in the follow-on programming established by our Grantees as a result of the success of the programs Impact FFC has funded (“The Next Chapter”).

Like a splash creating ripples on a pond, one Impact FFC grant can start a wave of actions that spread and exponentially increase our ultimate impact. We are thrilled to share some of these inspirational stories below.

The Ripple Effect:
Vicki Craver & Impact FFC

“At last year’s Grant Awards Celebration, I sat alone in the back row, looking out at the hundreds of women in the room, listening to the finalists present their grants, and marveling at how what Wendy and I had built mattered enough that it had lasted…and not just lasted but grown,” reflected Vicki Craver, co-founder of Impact Fairfield County.

The Ripple Effect:
Kerry Stevens & Open Doors

Living in Maine with her family during the pandemic, the last thing Kerry Stevens thought she’d find was a new career path in Fairfield County, but as we’ve all learned over the last few years, life has a way of taking unexpected turns. Kerry first joined Impact FFC in 2019, when she was living in Norwalk, and then she continued to participate virtually from Maine….

The Next Chapter:
INTEMPO

Impact Fairfield County’s gift “afforded us [the chance] to think big,” shared INTEMPO founder and CEO Angie Durrell. When Impact FFC awarded INTEMPO $100K (INTEMPO’s largest gift at that time!) in 2021, we provided much more than seed funding for a new program at the organization. We gave INTEMPO the opportunity to dream and grow.

The Ripple Effect:
Lizzy Scheinfeld & nOURish BRIDGEPORT

Inspired. That’s how Lizzy Scheinfeld felt leaving Impact FFC’s Fall Kickoff gathering this past November. At the event, Reverend Sara Smith, nOURish BRIDGEPORT’s CEO, spoke about the stark differences in lifespan between Bridgeport and its neighboring communities. Moved by the compelling data….

A Decade of Impact:
What are our Grantees doing now?

In honor of our 10th Anniversary, we will be periodically highlighting our past Grantees in a new “Flashback Friday” series. Check out the latest to learn more about our 17 Impact FFC Grantees!

The Next Chapter:
The Center for Family Justice

Restraining order. Divorce papers. Custody agreement. Request for child support. Navigating any one of these would be intimidating and stressful. Doing so without legal expertise or representation seems impossible. However, for many Bridgeport residents, this was their reality before The Center for Family Justice’s Pro Bono Legal Center (PBLC) opened in 2019.

The Ripple Effect:
Lindsay Wyman & SPEF

Rewind five years.  Lindsay Wyman was a new member of Impact Fairfield County, and after years as a teacher, school administrator, and national literacy consultant, was contemplating a career shift into the nonprofit world. Walking out of Impact’s 2018 Annual Meeting, Lindsay had a casual conversation with Matt Quinones, the CEO of SPEF….

The Ripple Effect:
Lindsay Brachle & nOURish BRIDGEPORT

“…Do you have any jelly?”  After last month’s nOURish BRIDGEPORT volunteer morning, Impact FFC member Lindsay Brachle couldn’t get that question out of her head.  And she knew she had to do something about it. While packing food bags that day, a nOURish Volunteer Coordinator shared….

The Ripple Effect:
Wendy Block & Generation Impact

Wendy Block’s – Impact Fairfield County’s (Impact FFC’s) fearless originator and co-founder – answer to the question “What ‘ripple’ are you most proud of?” may surprise you.

The Ripple Effect:
Cathy Manion & Bridgeport Rescue

Bridgeport Rescue Mission is a force in our community, providing vital services, free of charge, to neighbors in need. Cathy Manion, an Impact Fairfield County member since 2017, had long supported the Mission’s Great Thanksgiving drive when they applied for an Impact FFC grant in 2019. Their pitch for funding further piqued her interest….

The Next Chapter:
The Rowan Center

Impact Fairfield County’s mission is to give transformational grants to nonprofits. In 2017 when we awarded The Rowan Center $100,000 to build a program that would train trauma-informed nurses at local hospitals, we never could have imagined just how transformational our gift would be. The Rowan Center received funding to develop a program….

The Ripple Effect:
OPTIMUS Health Care

You never know what may come from being in the room where it happens! OPTIMUS Health Care, one of our five finalists [at the 2024 Grant Awards Celebration], made such a moving presentation to our membership that a woman at the event was inspired to fully fund their OB Patient Navigator program in Stamford with a private $100,000 anonymous gift.