5 CT Nonprofits Vie for Public Votes, $10,000 Grant from Red Sox Foundation

The Red Sox Foundation has announced that the voting period is now open for the 8th Annual IMPACT Awards presented by the Ruderman Family Foundation. Five nonprofit organizations from each state in New England, dedicated to raising awareness and improving mental health outcomes, have been nominated to receive grants.

In Connecticut, the organizations are Community Health Resources Inc., Abilis Inc., Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement Inc., Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford, and Jordan Porco Foundation.

An organization from each state will be selected to receive a first place grant of $10,000, a second place grant of $3,000, or a third place grant of $2,000 based on the number of online votes received. IMPACT Award winners will be recognized during a special pregame ceremony at Fenway Park on June 15 prior to the 7:10 p.m. Red Sox-Athletics game.

Fans can vote once per day at redsox.com/IMPACT through May 31. The month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month.

"Mental health continues to be an ever-growing epidemic, accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic. We are delighted to once again be partnering with the Red Sox Foundation on our annual IMPACT Awards as we look to address and normalize the stigma associated with mental health across society throughout New England and beyond," said Jay Ruderman, President of the Ruderman Family Foundation. "Each one of the organizations up for nomination have shown their commitment to carry out this important mission within their communities, and in recognizing and supporting these efforts, we hope others will be inspired to do the same."

In 2021, the Connecticut winners were 1st Place: Special Olympics Connecticut; 2nd Place: Andover, Hebron, Marlborough Youth and Family Services; 3rd Place: Mental Health Connecticut.

The Red Sox Foundation and Ruderman Family Foundation together pledged support to combat the stigma surrounding mental health in sports. At a panel discussion on May 2, the foundations recognized the continuing mental health crisis and the unique platform the sports industry has to raise awareness and reduce mental health stigma.

As the official team charity of the Boston Red Sox, the Red Sox Foundation's mission is to “make a difference in the lives of youth, veterans, families and communities in need by improving health, education and recreation opportunities.” The Foundation is committed to inspiring “recovery and rebirth in our communities in the year ahead, and thank you for your support of our critical work.”