Lavelle Fund for the Blind

**About the Lavelle Fund for the Blind** The Lavelle Fund for the Blind is a charitable grant-making foundation dedicated primarily to supporting programs that help individuals who are blind or visually impaired live independent and productive lives. While priority for direct service grants generally is given to programs in the greater New York metropolitan area, the Fund also considers grant requests with wider impact both nationally and internationally. **Mission, Vision, Values** **MISSION STATEMENT:** The Lavelle Fund for the Blind is a charitable grant-making foundation dedicated primarily to supporting programs that help individuals who are blind or visually impaired live independent and productive lives. While priority for direct service grants generally is given to programs in the greater New York metropolitan area, the Fund also considers grant requests with wider impact both nationally and internationally. **VISION STATEMENT:** We envision a world where people who are blind and visually impaired can lead full, independent, and productive lives. **LAVELLE FUND VALUES STATEMENT (or “Guiding Principles”)** **We believe that good grantmaking builds bridges and relationships.** - We value our grantees and the work that they do. **We believe that barriers can be overcome by connecting people with disabilities to resources and expertise.** - We value the communities we serve and their own inherent strengths. **We believe in collaborative resource sharing.** - We encourage our funding collaborators to build accessibility into their grantmaking. **We believe that our grantmaking should be affirming, and should be informed by compassion, respect, integrity and dignity.** - We value our history and the philosophy of human dignity and service to those in need. **We believe in effecting systemic change to ensure a legacy of inclusion, empowerment and accessibility for those with visual impairments.** - We value lasting impacts and accountability - We are committed to using our resources to help ensure equal access and equitable outcomes for blind and visually impaired people.