Ulysses opens community funding requests

The town of Ulysses will continue to offer a financial boost to organizations providing services and community programming for its residents.

Applications for contract requests to offer community services are now open, and submissions are due by 8 a.m. on Aug. 8. Further information and the application can be found at https://www.townofulyssesny.gov/__cms/docs/2026-Budget-Community-Org-Funding-Application-Town-of-Ulysses.pdf. “Historically, organizations have requested funding between $500 and $5,000, and have provided senior services, arts programs, recreation, and more,” according to a press release issued by the town. 

Teressa Naylor, Ulysses’ second deputy supervisor, said the town board and budget staff will consider the town’s overall financial health and the applications it has received during budget season to determine how much funding Ulysses will disburse to community groups.Discussions will take place during the fall, and applicants should expect to be notified about the outcome of their application sometime in November.

This is the fifth year Ulysses has funded programs through this process. Applicants may expect to be awarded funds during the spring, Naylor said.

She said the program’s purpose is to support organizations that are already assisting town residents.

“We fund organizations that contribute to the health, safety and welfare, and offer services to our residents,” Naylor said. “We want to help the organizations in our community that help our community and need funding. The town as an entity, obviously, can’t provide all these services, but we can help fund the organizations that do.”

Organizations seeking funding must submit a hard copy of the application via mail, hand-delivered to the town clerk’s office or dropped in the box located outside the front of the town hall, before the deadline. Applicants may be asked to meet with town board members to give a brief presentation.

For more information about the grant application, Naylor can be reached at tnaylor@townofulyssesny.gov or  (607) 387-5767 ext. 235.

Funding for community organizations this year was around $47,207, Naylor said, and was disbursed among 16 different organizations.

Although there are some financial parameters and considerations the town will abide by during budget season, she said there is no hard cap on the total amount  the town can fund. 

“In the past, we have fulfilled what people have asked for,” Naylor said. “It really all depends on how it falls in the budget, when it’s all written out.”

She feels the town has a duty to support organizations that are improving the lives of residents.

“The town as a whole benefits from anything that we can do to improve the lives of the citizens or certain sectors of our population,” Naylor said. “That’s an important thing our town supervisor is really focused on, really the town as whole. She’s just really excellent at being able to think in that way. I think that has contributed to the emphasis on these types of projects.”

The program, Naylor said, has been successful in recent years, leading to applicants who improve their services by applying for funding year over year. She also encouraged new applicants to consider applying for the program.

“We want to encourage organizations that haven’t applied before to apply because we have had a good number of repeat applicants and recipients, which is great,”Naylor said. “But it would also be wonderful to get new organizations in the mix for consideration as well.”