Mark your calendars: Monday, June 9 has been reserved for Hillside’s annual Charity Golf Tournament, returning to Monroe Golf Club in Pittsford, NY.

Attendees at the 2025 Tournament will enjoy 18 rounds of competitive play, with slight enhancements to the schedule including:

• 10:00am – Registration and continental breakfast
• 11:30am – Tee time for the shotgun start
• 12:00 to 3:00pm – Lunch during play
• 4:30pm – Awards, cocktails and a hors d’oeuvres reception

Monroe Golf Club is recognized as one of Western New York’s premier private clubs. The award-winning 18-hole course, designed by Donald Ross, is currently ranked among the “Top 100 Classic Courses” by Golfweek magazine.

In addition to the friendly competition, a silent auction and prizes are planned throughout the day—with all proceeds to benefit Hillside programs.

Corporate sponsorships and foursome slots are available; for information or to register online, visit Hillside.com/golf today.

Rochester Institute of Technology students in the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity and Zeta Tau Alpha sorority have a long tradition of supporting their community. For almost 25 years, students from those groups have hosted and participated in an annual school-wide “Mud Tug” tug-of-war event that raises money for local non-profits. In 14 of those years, they’ve designated Hillside as their charity of choice—and this year’s event resulted in a $10,350 gift to support Hillside programs.

Recently, the college students visited Hillside’s Crestwood Campus to learn more about where their annual donation goes. In a tour of the campus, they quietly took in the environment to see the residential cottages and classrooms. They had the opportunity to chat with staff to learn more about the needs of the youth.

Calista Amering, Hillside Chief Advancement Officer, attended a meeting of the student groups to share more about Hillside’s work and to thank Phi Kappa Psi and Zeta Tau Alpha members for their generosity. “They are a great group of youth who have a strong connection to service before self,” Amering said.

Community support keeps Hillside Strong! Please donate today.to make an important difference.

Through December 13, Hillside is once again inviting community members to become a Special Santa and help brighten the lives of thousands of children and their families who are served by the organization’s many programs.

For more than 40 years, the community has generously stepped up to provide new toys and gifts: Last year alone, more than 7,500 gifts and donations were provided to 3,000+ children and families served by the agency.

For the fourth consecutive year, KeyBank has proudly returned to serve as Presenting Sponsor for the respected holiday tradition. “Hillside’s Special Santa Toy and Gift Drive has become synonymous with the holiday spirit and season in Rochester,” said Vince Lecce, KeyBank Rochester Market President. “We are once again proud to serve as Presenting Sponsor, to make sure that children and their families will be able to share gifts and make memories during this special time of year.”

The Special Santa program offers multiple options for easy community participation:

• Make a convenient online donation, used by Hillside to purchase gifts for youth in care
• Shop online for gifts specifically requested by youth at Hillside’s Amazon Gift List
• Start a private fundraiser or neighborhood gift drive, supported by a giving page created by Hillside specific to your business or family.
• Drop off new, unwrapped toys and gifts at donation boxes located at dozens of KeyBank branches and additional partner sites throughout Western and Central New York.

“For many of the children served by Hillside, gifts received through Special Santa are the only presents they may receive during the holiday season,” said Maria Cristalli, Hillside President & CEO. “Each year, we ask the community to join our employees and the families of the youth we serve to join in a truly inspiring act of holiday generosity. We’re so grateful for the extraordinary support of Special Santa—and particularly for the commitment of our Presenting Sponsor, KeyBank.”

As an adoptive parent, Anna Calkins understands the complexities involved with navigating the worlds of adoption and foster care—and what a difference support can make on that journey.

Calkins works as an executive assistant at Corning Incorporated, the international Fortune 500 company headquartered in Steuben County, NY. She also leads a Corning Employee Resource Group, part of the Corning Family Support Network; her ERG is dedicated to providing support and resources to employees interested in adopting or fostering youth in need.

During a celebration of National Adoption Week, more than 50 Corning employees reached out to Hillside for perspectives and guidance that would help interested families take their next steps toward becoming foster or adoptive parents.

Shawna O’Dell, a Homefinding Specialist who works out of Hillside’s Bath, NY, office, co-presented on Therapeutic Foster Care and Adoption services to the dozens of interested Corning team members. The group was “really engaged,” O’Dell recalls; a Corning employee even reached out to O’Dell after the presentation, looking for information about becoming a foster parent.

“It was exciting, working with a group from the community like that,” O’Dell said. “It’s great to see that kind of interest.”

Further inspired by the presentation about Hillside’s community-facing services, the Corning employees collected $500 to donate to Hillside—a gift matched by the Corning Foundation, for a $1,000 donation in all.

Calkins says she and the other Corning participants learned a lot about the importance of fostering as a result of the Hillside presentation. “In my personal experience, foster parents played a crucial part in our adoption process and provided support for our son until he was placed in our home. Foster parents are like a bridge that help a child get to the next part of their life,” she says. “It’s great to know that kind of support is out there for kids who need help. And we really appreciated learning more about all that Hillside does.”

Philanthropy helps Hillside develop innovative supports in foster care and other vital community programs. Support Hillside’s mission today, and learn more about foster parenting.

Two leading companies have announced a joint $20,000 matching-gift donation that underscores their deep support for one of the oldest continuously operating nonprofits in the United States.

The Bonadio Group, LLP, and Harris Beach, PLLC, have committed to match total donations made by the general public to Hillside, up to $20,000, through June 30, 2022. Funds raised through this effort will support Hillside programs and priorities including Family First and Work-Readiness initiatives; vital Technology and Capital innovations; and the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection youth-development program.

“Harris Beach has a long history of supporting institutions that lift up our children and their families and strengthen our communities,” said Heidi Schult Gregory, managing partner, Harris Beach Rochester office. “Hillside is an extraordinary organization that provides community-based services, education and residential treatment to impact lives positively. Our organizations have a lot in common, including our longevity. We are excited to help bring the community together to cement Hillside’s bright future.”

“Supporting the communities we live and work in is one of our top priorities and a huge tenet of our Bonadio Purpose,” said Bruce Zicari, CEO of The Bonadio Group. “We are thrilled to be able to partner with organizations like Hillside who are actively working to make a difference in the lives of children and families, and we hope our contributions advance their critical efforts.”

“Philanthropy plays a critical role in Hillside’s ability to meet the constantly evolving needs of those we serve,” said Maria Cristalli, Hillside President and Chief Executive Officer. “We’re so grateful for these matching gifts from Harris Beach and The Bonadio Group, which offer a powerful show of support for services that make an important difference in the lives of nearly 10,000 youth and families every year.

“These matching gifts will amplify the impact of our community’s generosity,” Cristalli added. “There’s no better time to support our mission.”

To contribute to Hillside today, please visit www.hillside.com/donate or contact the Hillside Foundation at 585-256-7515.

For more than 50 years, Hillside’s mission has held a special place in the hearts of Gamma Phi Beta, a Rochester-area service sorority. Gamma Phi Beta members have made Hillside a local focus of their philanthropy, and that support takes many forms—including their annual tradition of producing “welcome bags” for youth at our Monroe and Crestwood residential campuses.

Each bag contains body, dental and hair-care products, as well as personal journaling supplies; and each is hand-decorated with a message of reinforcement or encouragement. A bag is given to each youth when they arrive on a campus for residential treatment.

“The dedication of the staff at Hillside to the children and their sincere appreciation of our Gamma Phi Beta alumnae have bonded us as a team,” said Rochester alumnae chapter co-president Sue Bloch. “Working with Hillside is a collaborative, fun effort to build a better future for the children and their families.”

All of Hillside thanks the women of Gamma Phi Beta for their long history of support. This is a wonderful example of the community embracing our mission!