The West Hartford Initiative on Racial & Ethnic Diversity, Inc. (WHIRED) has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, to help reach a wider audience through its programming and proposed website.

The mission of WHIRED is to improve understanding and expand cooperative action among people of different races, ethnicities and cultures in West Hartford.  “WHIRED was founded on the belief that the best way to solve community issues arising from diversity is for people of different races and backgrounds to meet and talk to each other in a non-combative atmosphere,” said Board Chair Marsha McCurdy.   

WHIRED has sponsored small group discussions called Dialogues on Race and Diversity, presented public forums on topics such as the achievement gap, and worked with the town’s public schools to develop educational programs about issues related to racism and diversity.

With funding from the Hartford Foundation, WHIRED plans to work with leaders in the West Hartford business community to present a program on diversity and the economy, to expand its programs in the public schools, and to develop a website.  WHIRED is also planning a townwide celebration of West Hartford’s diversity to be held next spring.

“We are grateful to the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving,” said WHIRED Coordinator Zena Kovack.  “This award will help us leverage other support so that we can broaden our outreach in the community.”

For additional information about WHIRED, contact Zena Kovack at (860) 313-0859 or coordinator@whired.org.

For over 80 years, the Hartford Foundation has built successful partnerships with donors and nonprofits to improve the quality of life for residents of the 29-town Greater Hartford region.  The Foundation receives gifts from thousands of generous individuals and families, and last year, awarded grants of more than $24 million to a broad range of area nonprofit organizations.  For more information about the Foundation, call 548-1888.