Buffalo City Mission: $500,000 commitment from KeyBank & First Niagara Foundation

Gift will support City Mission’s $15 million campaign for Alfiero Family Center of Hope and Promise, scheduled to open in first half of 2021

The Buffalo City Mission on Wednesday announced a $500,000 financial commitment from KeyBank and its partner, First Niagara Foundation.

With the gift, the City Mission is approaching the $15 million target of its “Next Century Capital Campaign” to fund its new one-stop community center: the Alfiero Family Center of Hope and Promise.

“The City Mission is thrilled to have the support of KeyBank and the First Niagara Foundation,” said Stuart Harper, CEO and executive director of the Buffalo City Mission. “Their generous gift further empowers our organization to serve the poor and homeless throughout Western New York.”

“KeyBank, in partnership with the First Niagara Foundation, works to support programs and organizations that address poverty in our community and the needs of the most vulnerable by helping to provide the resources necessary for the disadvantaged and those on the verge of homelessness,” said Elizabeth Gurney, executive director of the KeyBank and First Niagara foundations. “The Buffalo City Mission is providing shelter, food, day care, afterschool and summer care, medical care, as well as continuing education for thousands of homeless men, women and children and veterans. And now, through the new Alfiero Center of Hope and Promise, innovative and comprehensive recovery programs will be offered to help put individuals on the path to self-sufficiency and inspire lasting change.”

“We are grateful to KeyBank and the First Niagara Foundation for their commitment to the Alfiero Family Center of Hope and Promise,” said Aubrey Calhoun, associate executive director of the Buffalo City Mission. “Our organizations share a dedication to serving this community so that everyone can have an opportunity to prosper. Today’s gift plays an instrumental role in helping reach our $15 million goal for this new community center. It is also an honor to have them alongside us, as sponsors for the ‘Pathway to Hope and Healing’ that is dedicated to the rescue and restoration of individuals and families that face difficult challenges to overcome poverty and homelessness. This new pathway will reside outside the center for generations to come, displaying the many names of donors who represent our City of Good Neighbors through their care and support to help change lives.”

The announcement was part of a ceremonial press photo event held outside the Alfiero Family Center of Hope and Promise. Notable attendees included Harper, Calhoun and Gurney.

The 75,000-square-foot Alfiero Center provides preventative services on the front end to decrease the percentage of homelessness year-over-year for those who are on the brink of homelessness. It delivers more complete care to individuals who already experience homelessness. Notable features include space for social service agencies, case management, mental health services, medical care, the first recuperative care unit in Buffalo, job training, education, food and clothing.

The Alfiero Center’s ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for March 26, and will include a full announcement on total dollars raised for the “Next Century Capital Campaign.” The building is part of the City Mission’s vision moving into the next century to provide services that help prevent and decrease homelessness in the community.

To engage others with the center, the City Mission is also continuing its “Pick-a-Brick” campaign – a fundraising initiative that provides community individuals and organizations with an opportunity to make a lasting legacy gift to build a “Pathway to Hope” for the next century. To pick a brick, or to learn more, visit pickabrick.org. To learn more about the campaign and how to donate, visit nextcenturycampaign.org.

The Buffalo City Mission, founded in 1917, is a nonprofit organization providing preventative, emergency and transitional housing programs to thousands of people who are homeless and impoverished every year. This includes a Women and Children’s Shelter (Cornerstone Manor), the Men’s Community Center, and the Dick Road thrift store to serve the Western New York community. For more information, visit buffalocitymission.org or call 716-854-8181. Follow on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BuffaloCityMission, and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/CityMission.

KeyBank's roots trace back 190 years to Albany. Headquartered in Cleveland, KeyCorp is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $170.5 billion at Sept. 30, 2020. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management and investment services to individuals and businesses. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.

Founded in 1998, the First Niagara Foundation will carry out the philanthropic legacy of First Niagara Bank, which was acquired by KeyBank in 2016. The foundation, in partnership with KeyBank, supports not-for-profit organizations dedicated to empowering individuals and neighborhoods primarily in Western New York. For more information, visit http://www.firstniagarafoundation.org.