When the Redding family of Hinsdale decided to establish a fund to support third grade classrooms in Hinsdale and Olean as well as the Hinsdale Volunteer Fire Department, they did so quietly.
But that did not stop word from spreading as far as California – to a third-grade teacher from Hinsdale who retired to the Bay area.
The Redding Endowment Fund, established at the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation, will make possible annual grants, beginning at $300 each in September 2019, to the Hinsdale Volunteer Fire Department and East View Elementary and Hinsdale Central Schools, with the school grants to be used at the discretion of a third grade teacher at each respective school.
Sonya Borlandelli, formerly Sonya Larson, now living in Alamo, Ca, taught at Hinsdale Central School from 1963 to 1973. She also served as the Audio-Visual Director at BOCES at the time.
Because of her fond memories of life in Cattaraugus County, Borlandelli continues to follow the area’s news where she learned of the Redding Endowment Fund.
Learning of the causes the Redding Fund supports, she decided to make a generous donation and sent a kind letter to the family, thanking them for supporting those causes which are also near to her heart in her old hometown.
“Many thanks to the Redding Family for establishing the endowment fund,” she wrote. “We get many, many requests daily for donations, but this is one is very close to my heart, and I know where the funds will be used. Any teacher always needs help and support.”
Like the Redding Family, Borlandelli’s love for helping youth has lasted through the years. Today, she volunteers at a museum in Danville, California, that provides tours for local 3rd graders in a one-room schoolhouse from 1880.
Donations can be made to the Redding Endowment Fund at CRCF, 301 North Union St., Suite 203, or online at cattfoundation.org.
For 25 years, the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation has been the area’s supportive, responsive and trusted community foundation. Established in 1994, CRCF is growing good by connecting donors to the causes they care about most in the region. Grants from the foundation support many areas, including education, scholarships, health care, the arts, community development, human service, and youth development. To learn more, call (716) 301-CRCF (2723), email [email protected], or visit online at www.cattfoundation.org. CRCF is also on Facebook (facebook.com/cattfoundation) and Twitter (@CattFoundation).
