Momentum Fund mini-grants available, new grants announced

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July 17, 2019

Momentum Fund expands to Connecticut

Momentum Fund mini-grants are available for the first time in Connecticut. These one-year investments, for up to $10,000 each, are designed to build on community experiences and insights as they advance age- and dementia-friendly cities and towns.

"The strongest ideas for engaging on aging issues come from community," said Nora Moreno Cargie, president of Tufts Health Plan Foundation and vice president for corporate citizenship at Tufts Health Plan. "Our desire is to ensure these resources support those ideas."

Funding will be available to nonprofit organizations working on healthy aging in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. The Foundation has allocated $400,000 for the mini-grant program--up to $100,000 for each state where Tufts Health Plan does business.

Local review committees made up of key community stakeholders with diverse backgrounds will inform the process in each state. Nearly $270,000 went to organizations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island in 2018.

Interested in applying for Policy and Advocacy grants?

The Foundation is accepting letters of intent for Policy and Advocacy grants to community organizations working on age-friendly issues.

The deadline is next Monday, July 22, 2019 at 4:00 p.m. ET.

Read more about how to apply

Nearly $1.9 million supports community priorities for healthy living and older people

The Foundation announced 15 new investments reflecting a commitment to a community approach for making our cities and towns great places to grow up and grow old. The nearly $1.9 million supports nonprofit organizations working in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.

"Building communities that are responsive to the needs of older people is essential as our society ages," said Thomas P. O'Neill, III, chair of the Tufts Health Plan Foundation board of directors. "Our investments support community-based organizations in their efforts to implement age-friendly policies and practices."

The new grants reflect a trend of increased regional and local efforts to create age- and dementia-friendly communities, and to re-imagine the relationship to health care and community. The initiatives promote cross-sector collaboration, expand engagement of older people, advance improvements to support the health and wellbeing of older people, and address the social determinants of health.

Learn more

New resource to help communities meet needs of older people

Massachusetts communities working to meet the needs of older people can access helpful guidance, practical models and relevant examples via the new Age- and Dementia Friendly Integration Toolkit.

The toolkit brings together resources from the national and global age-friendly and dementia friendly movements. It was developed by the Executive Office of Elder Affairs with the Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative and the Massachusetts Councils on Aging.

Explore the toolkit

Age-Friendly R.I. energy is strong

A standing-room-only crowd filled the auditorium for Age-Friendly Rhode Island: Power Up 2019! in Warwick in June.

More than 250 community leaders and older people convened to hear about age-friendly work around the state and from Ashton Applewhite (pictured), author of This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism.

After a greeting from Lt. Governor Dan McKee, Commissioner Emily Shea from the Age Strong Boston Commission shared insights from her work. James Fuccione, from the Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative, moderated a panel of Rhode Island community leaders. Foundation President Nora Moreno Cargie closed out the event with a "fireside chat" with Rhode Island College President Frank Sanchez.

Summit brings together communities working to ReiMAgine Aging

Key stakeholders from across the Commonwealth gathered in Worcester for ReiMAgine Aging: Massachusetts Age- and Dementia-Friendly Community Summit--a convening for those working to make the places they live more age- and dementia-friendly.

The event, led by AARP Massachusetts with support from the Massachusetts Councils on Aging, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs and the Foundation, was designed to build on the momentum for age- and dementia-friendly work already underway.

Reframing Aging was the topic of the opening plenary. Breakout sessions focused on transportation, engaging partners, and how communities can become more inclusive and responsive to changing demographics.

National award for Healthy Living Center of Excellence (HLCE)

HLCE was selected for the 2019 Innovator Award by the National Council on Aging (NCOA). The award recognizes HLCE's unique partnership integrating health care delivery systems and community-based programs. More than 28,000 older adults have participated in HLCE programs since 2008.

NCOA's Trailblazer in Aging Awards honor the unique contributions and leadership of individuals and organizations working to empower every person to age well. HLCE is funded and supported by a variety of sources, including federal grants from the Administration for Community Living, and investments from foundations like Tufts Health Plan Foundation, John A. Hartford Foundation and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation.

Springfield first in the nation

Springfield is the first city in the country to earn three designations that advance the aging movement. Now community leaders are working to make the city both age-friendly and dementia-friendly while Baystate Medical Center and its Brightwood, High Street and Mason Square Health Centers work on their Age-Friendly Health Systems goals.

The announcement of this "trifecta" was made at Live Well Springfield's Age-Friendly Summit, convened by the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts. The Public Health Institute is a Foundation grantee.

Cape Ann communities recognized for integrated work

The first-in-the-nation integrated age- and dementia-friendly initiative is a Cape Ann effort led by Senior Care, a Foundation grantee. Four communities are involved--Gloucester, Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea and Rockport. They were awarded their AARP Age-Friendly designations and received regional recognition from Dementia Friends America at a summit on May 1. The event was attended by more than 200 community residents. Local and state officials, including Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders, who congratulated the communities for their groundbreaking work.