|
Community Foundation’s Maxine Quigg Women in Business
Fund Supports Five North Country Professionals
Published: March 18, 2025 at
06:30 p.m.
By: Press Release
from NNY Community Foundation
Foundation’s Maxine Quigg Women in Business Fund
Supports Five North Country Professionals
Local Women Awarded Grant Funding for Professional
Development
From left: Grant recipient Anna Platz, DeputyDirector of Lewis County Community Services,
Lowville; grant recipient Emily Green, manager and
chief operating officer of The Scrub Hub,
Watertown; Maxine Quigg’s daughter, Kennedy Quigg;
grant recipient Mary Chiappone-Filson,
owner of Treating the Root Acupuncture andMassage Therapy, Watertown;
and grant
recipient Gabriella “Gabi” Haycock, pediatricDoctor of Physical Therapy for Exceptional
Kids
and Family Therapies, Evans Mills.
WATERTOWN — A pair of
entrepreneurs, two health care professionals, and a county government professional
are among the third group of women to receive grant support from the Maxine
M. Quigg Women in Business Fund of the Northern New York Community
Foundation.
Mary
Chiappone-Filson, owner of Treating the Root Acupuncture and Massage
Therapy, Watertown, was awarded funding to complete coursework required for
lymphedema certification to more effectively treat patients who are
undergoing cancer treatments. Grant funding will also help with online
continuing education courses.
Mary earned an
Associate of Applied Science in massage therapy from North Country
Community College in 2011 and went on to receive a Bachelor of Science from
SUNY Potsdam in 2015, majoring in biology with a chemistry minor and
pre-med focus. She later earned a master’s degree in acupuncture from the
Finger Lakes School of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine at New York
Chiropractic College. In 2024, she earned a Doctorate of Acupuncture from
the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Mary also holds
an EMT-Basic certificate.
Mary opened
Treating the Root in 2018 with a goal to provide customized healing and
pain relief treatments for veterans and the Watertown community. Outside
her practice, Mary is known for her charitable giving and work with
children through the Sheep Dog Program. She is also a volunteer EMT.
Emily Green is the manager
and chief operating officer of The Scrub Hub, a women-owned and operated business
she opened with her mother, Bonnie Herman, in 2013, to serve the region’s
medical community. She was awarded funding to complete coursework to help
expand her knowledge of marketing, advertising, and social media.
Emily graduated
from Jefferson Community College in 2011, and SUNY Cortland in 2013,
earning a bachelor’s degree in business. She is an active community
volunteer, serving on the board of the Jefferson Community College
Foundation, among other organizations. Emily lives in Evans Mills with her
husband, Andre, and 3-year-old daughter, Peyton.
Gabriella “Gabi”
Haycock is a pediatric Doctor of Physical Therapy for Exceptional Kids and
Family Therapies in Evans Mills. She was awarded funding to enable her
participation in the Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce
Jefferson Leadership Institute, a year-long program focused on developing
professionals in the greater Watertown area.
A Clayton native,
Gabi earned a Doctor of Physical Therapy in 2018 from Daemon University,
Buffalo. Gabi and her husband, Robert Owens, operate the women-owned
business G.R.O. Energy Solutions, which helps provide home energy
assessments and upgrades for low- to moderate-income residents. The couple
lives in Watertown where Gabi is active in her community, volunteering her
time with various professional and nonprofit organizations.
Barb Perez is a longtime nonprofit professional and a Strengths Finder
coach, helping people to reach their full potential through her consulting
business Another Point of View. She was awarded funding to complete the
Gallup course Successful Strength Coaching.
Barb first came
to Northern New York from Rochester in 1997 to live closer to family. After
multiple deployments and many duty stations with her husband, a now-retired
U.S. Army Master Sergeant, the love of family and Northern New York called
them home.
Barb earned a
bachelor’s degree in psychology and social science in 2010 from Upper Iowa
University and holds two Master of Arts degrees from Liberty University.
She is presently pursuing a Master of Social Work from Liberty University.
She is active in community service and is a member of the Watertown Sunrise
Rotary Club. She lives in Black River with her
husband. Together they have six children.
“It is a complete
honor to carry on the tradition that Maxine began of pouring love into
entrepreneurial women in leadership,” Barb said. “I am very grateful for
this support.”
Anna Platz is the Deputy
Director of Lewis County Community Services in Lowville. She was awarded funding
to complete the Appreciative Inquiry Certificate Program at the Champlain
College Cooperrider Center. A leadership development program, it employs a
strengths-based approach to focus on what’s working well instead of fixing
what’s broken.
Anna earned a
bachelor’s degree in exercise science and psychology in 2016 from SUNY
Cortland. She later earned a Master of Public Health from SUNY Albany as
well as a certificate in Climate Change & Health from Yale School of
Public Health.
Anna is active in
her community, serving the board of the Lewis County General Hospital
Foundation, and the Community Foundation’s LEAD Council, among other
organizations. She lives in Carthage with her cat, Max.
Kimberley Horrill, Maxine’s sister-in-law, established the
fund at the Community Foundation in July 2021 with a goal to increase local
mentorship, volunteerism, civic and community engagement, and investment. Its
mission is to perpetuate the life and legacy of Maxine Quigg by supporting
and empowering women entrepreneurs in Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence
counties to succeed in their pursuits and realize their full potential.
“This is the
third year of the Maxine Quigg Women in Business fund grants. I am
overwhelmed at times by the interesting and community-forward work the
successful recipients are doing,” Ms. Horrill
said. “As the network of women who have received support has grown, I am
thrilled to see the interaction between past and present recipients. Maxine
would love you all and would be so proud of the work you are doing.
Congratulations.”
Maxine was a
successful real estate broker and a community and business leader in
Jefferson County who passed away unexpectedly in April 2021. At the time of
her passing she was serving on the Community Foundation’s Board of
Directors.
“It is always a
pleasure and an honor to reward women in the North Country who are starting
or growing their own business. Year after year, I walk away inspired by
each recipient’s dedication and passion for what they do — it is people
like these who make Northern New York a better place to live,” Maxine’s
daughter, Kennedy Quigg said. “Congratulations to our 2024 award
recipients; you embody the qualities my Mom sought
to embellish, and we are excited to see you carry our mission forward in
your life and business endeavors.”
Through access to
grants for education, training, and entrepreneurship, the fund supports the
advancement,
development, and
betterment of women who are beginning or growing a business in Northern New
York. In doing so, women may be better positioned and equipped to realize
their full potential for themselves, their families, and their community.
Applications for
2025 funding through the Maxine Quigg Women in Business Fund of the
Community Foundation are now open. Applications for support must be
received by Friday, May 23, 2025. Contact Emily Pfeil,
Community Foundation philanthropy associate, emily@nnycf.org, or 315-782-7110,
to obtain an application for this opportunity and learn more.
About the
Northern New York Community Foundation
Since 1929, the
Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and
enriching the quality of life for all in communities across Jefferson,
Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties.
Through
partnerships with businesses and organizations, charitable foundations, and generous families and individual
donors, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an
endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment
to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for
generations to come by preserving and honoring legacies of community philanthropy
while inspiring others.
The Community
Foundation is a resource for local charitable organizations, donors,
professional advisors and nonprofit organizations. It also works to bring
people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy
Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative solutions
that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live, work, and
play.
|
