Piper Trust Awards Grants Totaling $6.6 Million 
to 13 Area Organizations

Next Chapter Projects for Baby Boomers, Society of St. Vincent de Paul Receive Grants

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. (September 30, 2004) –  The Trustees of The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust announced 13 grants totaling more than $6 million today.

Four grants totaling $1.6 million will go to collaborative efforts involving 46 Valley organizations to establish four new Next Chapter projects, which are designed to link older adults with community volunteer or paid opportunities, wellness information and educational opportunities.  The projects offer a new model of service delivery to the rapidly increasing segment of older adults who are seeking an active and engaged retirement. Among the first in the nation, these centers will support the needs of baby boomer retirees.

The grantees are: Mesa Community College, the City of Tempe, Chandler Public Library and Scottsdale Community College. Each project has multiple partners engaged in the proposed implementation of the life options centers.  A total of 46 separate organizations are part of the four recommended projects.

Next Chapter projects are designed to provide a location for older adults “to make the transition to a new stage of life characterized by individual and social renewal,” according to the Life Options Blueprint, developed by the Maricopa Commission on Productive Aging, in concert with Civic Ventures and Libraries for the Future.  Core elements include:

Life planning programs,

• Developing knowledge of volunteer and paid opportunities,
• Lifelong learning for new careers and enrichment,
• Spaces and programs that promote social connections and foster a community for all ages and
• Information and assistance with resource navigation.

Similar projects are being implemented in a number of areas of the country including Chicago, Cleveland, and central Florida.  The Next Chapter projects share information and best practices. The Piper-funded projects are among the most extensive in the nation.

“The Next Chapter centers will provide a location where recent retirees can make a successful transition to a new stage of life marked by renewal and civic engagement,” said Carol Kratz, a program officer for the Trust.  “Organizations across the county have worked for nearly two years planning what services a new type of retiree will be seeking such as career counseling, lifelong learning, and civic engagement.”

The Trustees also awarded $3 million to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul to support the endowment of the Virginia G. Piper Medical and Dental Clinic, enabling more low income families to receive health and dental care.

“Virginia Piper admired and supported the work of St Vincent DePaul, and it is fitting that the medical clinic that serves so many children and families bears her name,” said Judy Mohraz, President and CEO of the Trust.