Greenwich’s philanthropic sphere extends to a broad sweep of private institutions and charitable trusts augmenting the municipal social services department and other government agencies at the state and federal levels. Many are registered as 501(c)(3) institutions allowing for tax deductible contributions to the extent permitted by law. A number are also affiliates of national and international movements. Others are indigenous only to Greenwich.

Heart Care International, for example, is a Greenwich-based alliance of medical volunteers who travel to the world’s underdeveloped nationals and perform operative procedures like open heart surgery and catheter interventions to restore the health of economically deprived children and young adults in places like Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. In an average year, the medical teams might do up to 50 of such operations.

The 2,200-member Boys & Girls Clubs of Greenwich meanwhile is committed to building skills and self-esteem for all young people but works primarily with those from disadvantaged circumstances. The latest figures available (from Charity Navigator) show annual revenue of $6.5 million and operating expenses of $4 million, leaving an accumulation of more than $28 million in assets over the years.

Across Interstate 95, at the entrance to Roger Sherman Baldwin Park, the Greenwich Teen Center operates in an historic three-story building and provides activities and entertainment for youngsters from grades 7 through 12.

Twenty-six institutions in Greenwich were the 2008 beneficiaries of $2.2 million-plus allocated by the United Way of Greenwich, up five percent from the previous year. The disbursement covered $874,000 for services for children and families, $548,000 to promote self-sufficiency, $175,000 to support seniors and $70,000 invested in core services such as Community Answers, a reference resource.

Among the UW recipients, $404,000 went to Family Centers which recently merged with HealthCare Centers of Stamford and coalesces more than 1,000 professionals and trained volunteers, furnishing services for 20,000 individuals, young and old, in Fairfield County.

The UW also supports Pathways, Inc., which operates four residences to provide psychiatric care and assistance for the mentally ill and homeless. Funding also comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.

The Greenwich Land Trust, dedicated to retaining the natural beauty and environmental health of the community, has preserved hundreds of pristine acres and oversees properties such as the Agnew Apple Orchand, Allen Meadow,
Lapham Wildlife Preserve, Shellenberger Sanctuary and Willowmere Salt Marshes.

Meals-on-Wheels of Greenwich provides two meals a day—delivered by volunteers--for as little as $8, a service it has been providing since 1961 for those confined to their homes.

Neighbor to Neighbor, operating out of the basement of Christ Church furnishes emergency and disaster relief and food and clothing for those in need.

Greenwich Association for Retarded Citizens, or ARC as it calls itself, serves adults and young people with special needs, living in the Greenwich-Stamford area.

A few blocks apart on East Putnam Avenue, the Greenwich Family YMCA and the YWCA Greenwich offer a full mosaic of activities from aquacize to tai chi and yoga.

Services clubs like the Lions, Rotary and Kiwanis are represented by seven active chapters in the community.

Two of the most extensively engaged and highly regarded agencies in global humanitarian aid are headquartered in communities off Interstate 95 a few miles from Greenwich: AmeriCares in Stamford and Save the Children in Westport.

AmeriCares has distributed more than $7.5 billion in relief in 137 countries since it was established in 1982. The American Institute of Philanthropy records that more than 98 percent of its income of goods and revenue goes to aid and less than two [percent to administrative expense.

Save the Children works in 50 countries and over the past 75 years has assisted 37 million children and 24 million adults. Charity Navigator confers a Four Star rating on Save the Children, the highest level of efficiency.

How to reach them:

AmeriCares
88 Hamilton Avenue
Stamford, CT 06902
203.658.955
1 800 486-HELP (4357)
Web site www.americares.org

Boy Scouts of America
Greenwich Council
63 Mason Street
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.8424
Web site www.greenwichbsa.com

Boys and Girls Clubs of Greenwich
Four Horseneck Lane
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.3224
Web site www.bgcg.org

Family Centers
40 Arch Street
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.4848
Web site www.familycenters.org

Greenwich Association for Retarded Citizens
50 Glenville Street
Greenwich, CT 06831
203.531.1880
Web site www.arcgreenwich.org

Greenwich Department of Social Services
Town Hall
101 Field Point Road
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.622.3800
Web site www.greenwichct.org/socialservices

Greenwich Family YMCA
50 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.1630
Web site www.gymca.org

Greenwich Land Trust
PO Box 1152
Greenwich, CT 06836
203.629.2151
Web site www.gltrust.org

Greenwich Teen Center
100 Arch Street
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.629.5744
Web site www.archstreet.org

Heart Care International
139 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.552.5343
Web site www.heartcare.org

Meals-on-Wheels of Greenwich
89 Maple Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.1312
www.mealsonwheelsofgreenwich.org

Neighbor-To-Neighbor
248 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.622.9208
Web site www.n-to-n.org

Pathways, Inc.
175 Milbank Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.5656
Web site www.pathways-greenwich.org

Save the Children
54 Wilton Road
Westport, CT 06880
203.221.40830 (after p.m., 800.728.3843)
Web site www.savethechildren.org

United Way of Greenwich
1 Lafayette Court
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.2221
Web site www.unitedway-greenwich.com

YWCA Greenwich
259 East Putnam Avenue
Greenwich, CT 06830
203.869.6501
Web site www.ywca.org