Mystic Valley Elder Services (MVES) was recently awarded a $100,000 sustaining grant over a 4-year period through Cummings’s Foundation “$100k for 100” program. The grant was awarded to MVES in support of its Elder Independence Fund, a 21-year program that makes it possible for low-income older adults or adults living with disabilities to receive an urgently needed item or service that helps them remain independent and for which there is no other resource or way to obtain the needed item or service.

“This grant will be a tremendous help in maintaining our Elder Independence Fund and I am truly grateful for Cummings Foundation’s support. Through their generous gift, this award will make positive impacts on the lives of people in need,” said MVES CEO Daniel O’Leary.

The $100k for 100 program supports nonprofits that are based in and primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties. Through this place-based initiative, Cummings aims to give back to the communities where its commercial buildings are located, all of which are managed at no cost to the Foundation, but its affiliate Cummings Property. MVES was chosen from a total of 574 applicants during a competitive review process.

“By having such a local focus, we aim to make a meaningful, positive difference in the communities where our colleagues and leasing clients live and work,” said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation’s executive director. “We are grateful for the nonprofit organizations that assist and empower our neighbors, and we are proud to support their efforts.”

This year’s diverse group of recipients represents a wide variety of causes. The complete list of 100 grant winners is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org.

Receiving the 100k for 100 program grant is (l) Daniel O’Leary, CEO of Mystic Valley Elder Serivces (MVES), (m) Jan Brody, MVES Development Specialist and (r) Jenny Vanasse, MVES Development Director. Awarding the grant from the Cummings Foundation is Nancy Powers and Brendan Saunders.

Representing MVES’ Elder Independence Fund Committee—to which the grant was awarded—is (l to r) Jessica Parow, Terri Fitzgerald, Jenny Vanasse, Larry Poirier, MVES CEO Daniel O’Leary, Joyce Sauca, Kathy Learned, Beverly Pacheco, and Julie Souliotis.