White Plains Youth Bureau Exec Director Recognized As Westchester Community Foundation’s 2011 Circle of Giving Honoree

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Mr. Williams Urges Community to “Put Children First”

As Frank Williams accepted the Westchester Community Foundation 2011 Circle of Giving Award on December 8, he acknowledged the more than one hundred family, staff, fraternity brothers, and church friends in attendance. 

“These are the people who help me along the way. I couldn’t accomplish anything without their help and support,” he noted.  

The award carried a $10,000 grant to the .  As the Youth Bureau’s long-time executive director, Mr. Williams is known for his untiring commitment to ensuring that young people are given opportunities to succeed. 

Westchester Community Foundation’s Circle of Giving Award was established in 2007 to recognize the donors, professional advisors, and nonprofit leaders who strive to make Westchester a better place for all its residents. This year, in selecting a nonprofit leader to honor, the Foundation sought an individual who has provided leadership by communicating his/her vision of a strong community made whole through cooperation and mutual respect.

Past recipients include Jim Bostic, Nepperhan Community Center; Carola Bracco, Neighbors’ Link; Ann Barringer Spaeth, Port Chester Council of Community Services; and Howard Smith, Superintendent of Tarrytown Schools.  The award has, in some instances, recognized donors and professional advisors; including lawyers, accountants, and financial planners who have reached out to lend support to community organizations. 

In his acceptance speech, Mr. Williams identified the need to “come together as a community and as a nation to put our children’s future first.” He told the audience, “Our work is a calling – a calling to serve and make communities better.”

Mr. Williams’ calling to youth and community permeates his personal and professional life. He has had a long and distinguished career in community service including 23 years with the White Plains Youth Bureau. Under his leadership the Youth Bureau has blossomed. 

It now joins with local businesses, nonprofits, city and county agencies to conduct some 50 youth employment, after-school, counseling, youth leadership, mentoring, arts, and environmental programs that serve 2,000 young people every day.

The Youth Bureau provides services to children and youth in the White Plains Public Schools, Housing Authority Centers, the Slater Center, and El Centro Hispano.

The Youth Bureau has received support from the Foundation for a variety of programs since 1997, including a 2010 grant to provide disadvantaged youth job training and placement in the culinary arts industry. This program received a second place economic development award from the New York State Conference for Mayors.

This year, the Foundation is supporting the Youth Bureau’s community innovative agriculture project, which teaches residents gardening skills and brings crops from a community garden to a local food pantry.

Mr. Williams’ personal calling does not limit itself to the Youth Bureau. He is the co-founder and chair of the Board of Directors of Passage to Excellence, a nonprofit agency that provides after-school and summer programming, as well as community health and fitness programs. 

He is a member of the Board of Directors of Good Counsel Academy and the Black Scholars Committee, and the director of the Social Action Committee of the Beta Alpha Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. 

The Westchester Community Foundation was founded in 1975 to build a permanent source for philanthropy in Westchester County. 

Guided by a Board of Advisors composed of community leaders, the Westchester Community Foundation provides donors with maximum tax savings, professional staff support, in-depth knowledge of Westchester, and permanence within the community. 

Westchester Community Foundation donors benefit from the investment and financial management services of its parent, The New York Community Trust, an 85-year-old institution with assets of more than $1.8 billion.