2020 Year in Review

The Dyson Foundation is pleased to present our 2020 Year in Review. In 2020, the Foundation awarded a total of $9.3 million in grants. In light of the global pandemic, which severely challenged the nonprofit sector and the communities they serve, $1.2 million of that funding was in the form of COVID-19 community response grants to support safety net and related human services. See our 2020 Year in Review to learn about our grantmaking and collaborative response to the impacts of the pandemic.

Dyson Foundation Response to COVID-19

In 2020, the Dyson Foundation provided community response funding and other support to organizations throughout the Mid-Hudson Valley as they worked tirelessly to serve the region. Learn more in our 2020 Year In Review. We recognize that the effects of the pandemic are ongoing, so in 2021 we will continue to offer some of the resources we put in place last year. These include:

  • Providing additional grant support to current or recent Dyson Foundation grantees, especially those whose work focuses on meeting people’s basic health and human service needs for food, shelter, and financial assistance. Funding is limited and we encourage you to contact a member of our program staff before submitting a letter of inquiry to discuss your organization’s needs.
  • Increasing our Cash Flow Loan fund to $500,000, removing the fees, and increasing the length of the loan terms. Find more information here.
  • Collaborating with other funders in the region through the Hudson Valley Funders Network, which offers free technical assistance through the New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON) as well as resources, webinars, and other useful information. NYCON has also compiled an excellent and current source of information for nonprofits on their COVID-19 Resources for Nonprofits page.

Even if your organization is not eligible for funding from the Dyson Foundation, you may be eligible for support from other Mid-Hudson Valley funders, some of which offer pooled funds or other COVID response support. These include the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley, the Community Foundation of Orange & Sullivan, the United Way of the Dutchess-Orange Region, and the United Way of Ulster County.