Northeast Utilities is placing four parcels of company land totaling 981 acres into a nonprofit land trust, apparently the nation's first by a regulated utility.

The parcels include 723 acres located on Skiff Mountain in Sharon; 188 acres on the Connecticut River at Kings Island in Enfield; 57 acres on Hanover Road in Newtown; and 13 acres on Bartlett Cove in Waterford.

An interactive website for the public will have increasing numbers of maps, pictures and videos of the properties to help identify hiking trails and other recreation opportunities. The website is expected to offer information about dozens of other properties the company owns that are not in the land trust but are still open for the public to use.

For more information: Tricia Taskey Modifica, (860) 665-4605, tricia.modifica@nu.com.

Dime Bank has begun offering eight weeks of financial education training to youths with Our Piece of the Pie (OPP), a nonprofit agency that aims to help young people attain new educational, employment, and personal skills.

The Dime "curriculum" will cover: Banking Basics, What to Expect When Living on Their Own, Credit Education and Awareness, Investing their Money, and Getting a Loan.

"Financial literacy is a key element in our efforts," says Jinelle Hooker, supervisor of OPP Norwich. "It gives youth the knowledge and skills to manage financial resources effectively for a lifetime of financial well-being. The youth really enjoy Dime Bank's interactive and engaging approach to financial literacy."

For more information: Cheryl Calderado, (860) 859-4318, ccalderado@dime-bank.com.

Literacy education for children and adults is going digital (and mobile) over the next year, with help from Community Foundation of Greater New Britain (CFGNB).

 

The new Coalition to Enhance Family Literacy, a collaboration of family resource centers, public libraries in New Britain, Plainville, and Southington, and Plainville Adult Education, are developing a comprehensive family literacy approach based on the availability of 90 new e-readers, 30 at each library.

 

Bank of America (BoA) is asking consumers, employees and sports fans to make simple gestures of gratitude for returning troops, and is willing to say "thank you" in return with up to $250,000 for veterans' services.

To participate, individuals can take a photo or write a message and share it on www.bankofamerica.com/troopthanks by Veterans Day, November 11, 2012. Alternatively, they can upload a picture via Instagram or Twitter and tag it with #troopthanks. The images will be turned into a patriotic digital mosaic.

For each image and thanks, the Bank of America Charitable Foundation will donate $1 to support economic empowerment programs run by the Wounded Warrior Project, including career counseling services and job placement assistance.

BoA says nearly 6,000 military service members and veterans work for the company, which last year was named to G.I. Jobsmagazine's list of military-friendly employers, and has been included in Military Times EDGE magazine's "Best for Vets" list for three straight years.

For more information: T.J. Crawford, (646) 855-3301, tj.crawford@bankofamerica.com.

Boehringer Ingelheim Cares Foundation reported it has donated $1.125 billion in medicines over its 11-year history, including to nearly a half million eligible patients in the United States alone.

The foundation gives its medicines to three nonprofits -- AmeriCares, Direct Relief International, and MAP International -- who, in turn, collaborate with partners in the U.S. and other countries to provide ongoing medical service programs and respond to disasters.

For more information: Sperry Mylott, (203) 297-5825.

Citing evidence that people of color who receive care through a Patient-Centered Medical Home Model (PCMH) are likely to have positive health outcomes at reduced costs, the Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) has released a policy brief, Advancing Health Equity through Medical Homes, with examples.

"CT Health has heard health care providers ask for realistic solutions that they can implement to improve health equity among their patients," said Elizabeth Krause, senior program officer for the Connecticut Health Foundation. "While far from a panacea, there are components of PCMH that can improve patient-provider communication, care delivery, and health outcomes."

CT Health commissioned national expert Ignatius Bau to conduct research on PCMH activity in Connecticut, from which he authored the policy brief, an annotated bibliography of literature and resource references, and a blog about how Connecticut is approaching the PCMH.

For more information: Maryland Grier, (860) 724-1580, x21, Maryland@cthealth.org.

The Connecticut Bar Foundation is asking the state's high schoolers to write about unprescribed drug use for its 13th Annual James W. Cooper Fellows Quintin Johnstone Essay Contest, with a deadline for essays of March 1, 2013.

"Prescription for Success?" asks students to assume the role of a local attorney who is asked by the local high school principal for advice. The presumptive valedictorian is accused by the salutatorian of using non-prescribed Ritalin to help pass at least one exam.

The contest is open to high school students, vocational-technical school students, students enrolled in a high school diploma credit program under the age of 21, and high school-age home-schooled students. The contest winner will receive $2,000 and the two runners-up will receive $1,000 at a ceremony presided over by Connecticut Supreme Court Justices at the Connecticut Supreme Court.

Contest rules are available here.

For more philanthropy news go to the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy's press room and the Connecticut Philanthropy Digest archives; Funders, please email us your news and feedback.

The national Grantmakers for Children, Youth, and Families (GCYF) awarded the 10th Fred Rogers Leadership Award in Philanthropy for Children, Youth, and Families to DAVID M. NEE, executive director of the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund. The fund works collaboratively to improve learning for Connecticut's children by supporting instructional improvement, informing the public debate on educational issues, and strengthening the involvement of families and communities in education.

Nee is renowned for pioneering public/private partnerships and playing a pivotal role in launching systemic change around early childhood education in Connecticut.

As board chair of the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy, he co-founded the Early Childhood Funders Affinity Group. From 2006 to 2009, Nee co-chaired the Early Childhood Research and Policy Council, established by then Governor M. Jodi Rell to support Connecticut's Early Childhood Education Cabinet.

In the last six years, the Memorial Fund partnered with the State and the Children's Fund of Connecticut to support 40 communities in creating local comprehensive plans for children from birth to 8. This partnership resulted in more than $11.1 million for local community support and capacity building.

Nee currently is a member of the board of Connecticut Nonprofits Association; previously led the Ittleson Foundation and Florence V. Burden Foundation; chaired the boards of the New York Regional Association of Grantmakers and The Institute for Community Peace; and served on the board of the National AIDS Fund.

GCYF presented Nee with $5,000 donation for charities of his choice, which he has donated to the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance and Connecticut Parent Power.

The award is given annually in memory of Fred Rogers of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, and one of the country's most beloved advocates for children.

CLAIRE and LEONARD TOW, vice president and chairman, respectively, of The Tow Foundation have signed The Giving Pledge, an effort led by Microsoft Founder Bill Gates, Investor Warren Buffett, and others to encourage the wealthiest individuals and families in America to commit to giving the majority of their wealth to the philanthropic causes and charitable organizations of their choice either during their lifetime or after their death.

In the letter to Bill Gates that the Tows made public, they wrote, in part:

"Claire and I never believed that the wealth we accumulated was truly ours. From the beginning we believed that we were only lifetime stewards of our good fortune and were charged with redeploying it for useful societal purpose...

"After allocating a small portion of our estate to our children and grandchildren, it is our intent to distribute as much as we can find reasonable purpose for during our lifetimes, with the remainder to go to the Foundation...

"We are pleased to join with you and Warren in this pledge to give back what we have been so fortunate to accumulate."

Claire and Leonard Tow

 

You can find information and statistics about The Giving Pledge on Glasspockets. The Foundation Center' transparency initiative is keeping an Eye on the Giving Pledge, providing an in-depth picture of the participants and their publicly known charitable activities.

United Way of Greater New Haven President and CEO JACK HEALY traveled to Washington, DC this month to share United Way's experience with other school districts involved with education reform, and to accept White House officials' praise for its work with the Boost! initiative, a partnership between United Way, New Haven Public Schools, and the City of New Haven that addresses the social, emotional and physical needs of students.

 "The groups involved felt it was extremely important to share information on what is being learned in school reform efforts, and a network has been set up to help us continue to communicate," Healy said.

 New Haven is one of six demonstration communities taking part in Together for Tomorrow, a partnership formed by the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), to spotlight and foster collaborations among schools, families, national service programs, and community-based organizations to improve low performing schools.

The Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford has elected three new trustees - BRIAN S. FIERSTON, JILL J. HUTENSKY and MELVIN A. SIMON - and thanked departing members GIDEON RUTENBERG and THOMAS DIVINE.

 Brian S. Fierston, CFP, is vice president of Fierston Financial Group, which he joined after working at both Connecticut National Bank and Shawmut Bank in credit analysis. Brian manages client relationships, creates securities portfolios, researches portfolio managers, is in charge of bond trading, and also manages the technology needs of the firm. He chairs the Investment Committee and is an active member of the Board of Trustees at Watkinson School.

 Jill J. Hutensky spent 15 years with United Technologies Corporation in a variety of roles, from Sales and Marketing, to Operations, Communications and Corporate Responsibility, where she most recently managed the Corporation's $5 million charitable giving program. She is currently serving on the Board of Overseers of the Bushnell Center for Performing Arts, and the Board of The Center for Children's Advocacy as treasurer.

 Melvin A. Simon has been a partner at the law firm of Cohn, Birnbaum and Shea, PC since 1998, where he specializes in Commercial Litigation. Among the organizations in which he has played a leadership role are the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford - where he served on the board from 1995 through 2007; the Mandell Jewish Community Center, since 1993; and president of the Jewish Teen Learning Connection the Jewish Community High School formerly known as Yachad from 2009 through 2012.

VAL DUMAIS of Plainville has been elected to the Board of the Main Street Community Foundation.

 The current chairperson of the Plainville Economic Development Agency and a member of the Plainville Rotary Club, Dumais was employed at Cigna Healthcare for 31 years and retired as the Vice President of National Accounts.

 In addition to his current roles, Dumais is a former Town Councilman and the former chairperson for the Plainville Insurance Commission. He has served on the Board of Directors for the United Way of West Central Connecticut, the Board of Managers for Wheeler Regional YMCA, and the Plainville Board of Education. He was in the U.S. Coast Guard.