The Mary B. Grogan Fund, housed at the Greater Worcester Community Foundation, has committed multi-year grant funding to the Millbury Public Library to support its programming, totaling approximately $7,500 over three years.
Established in 2001, the fund was created in honor of Mary B. Grogan after the closure of the Worcester County 4-H chapter, which Mary helped establish. The purpose of the fund is to support recreational and educational programs for youth in Millbury, focused on various aspects of environment, agriculture, horticulture and animal life.
Millbury Public Library has benefitted from the Mary B. Grogan Fund for years, receiving over $16,000 in total grants since its inception. Now, the three-person committee of the Fund has agreed to provide the library with valuable multi-year support to sustain two of its programs:
A Mission of Science: The Millbury Public Library hopes to serve up to 60 youth for each of the five science programs offered through A Mission of Science, designed to educate youth on various environmental/science topics. Programming will be free and will run April to July in 2024.
Community Sensory Garden: To encourage its young patrons to explore and appreciate nature, the Millbury Public Library will be creating a sensory garden this summer that will include planting and maintenance by youth and community members. Each of the four garden beds will be dedicated to one of the senses: scent, taste, touch and sight.
We are thrilled to be able to expand our free programming in 2024. Many young patrons are drawn to attractive and innovative science education that allows them to explore and learn. We are deeply grateful to Mary B. Grogan Fund for the ongoing support of our work, and to the Friends of the Millbury Public Library for committing to any remaining funding needed to support our Sensory Garden project.
- Ann Dallair, Library Director
The Mary B. Grogan Fund is administered by the Greater Worcester Community Foundation. A three-person advisory committee makes the grant recommendations, currently made up of Elaine Loehman, Mary Lou Mulhane, and Peter Keenan.
“We are long-time supporters of the Millbury Public Library,” says Elaine Loehman, speaking on behalf of the committee. “The programming and services they provide for young people are in direct alignment with the purpose of this Fund, and the committee was proud to decide, for the first time in our history, to commit multi-year funding to the library.”
This unique, creative programming will benefit hundreds of young people in the Millbury community.
- Mary B. Grogan Fund Committee
Learn more about the Millbury Public Library’s programming in this blog post.
