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Transformational Impact

As a regional foundation with a strategic geographic focus, the Buhl Foundation’s history of success and thought leadership continues in the entrepreneurial spirit of our giving.

An aerial view of Pittsburgh’s Mexican War Streets, one of the Northside’s 18 unique neighborhoods.

Pittsburgh’s Northside

The Buhl Foundation has committed to a place-based strategy to invest in the lives and futures of the residents of Mr. Buhl’s beloved Northside. The majority of Foundation funds are directed towards Pittsburgh’s 18 Northside neighborhoods that some 40,000 residents call home. The resident-driven initiative birthed from this commitment, One Northside, catalyzes and supports long-term sustainable change with particular emphasis on resourcing community members, young and old, to lead and create tangible change from within.

The success of One Northside will be found in the value of relationships and respect given to each individual and neighborhood. Working with thousands of Northside residents and community members, the One Northside strategy is grounded in five key pillars:

EDUCATION
EMPLOYMENT
HEALTH
PLACE
SAFETY

All applications for funding under the One Northside initiative must align with these resident driven priorities.

Regional

Endowed with a sense of curiosity and flexibility, the vision for the Buhl Foundation was, and remains, one of transformational impact for the whole community of Pittsburgh. In addition to our commitment to the Northside of Pittsburgh, the Foundation remains sensitive to four major areas in our region:

Education

Initiatives that foster learning environments critical to building a knowledgeable and talented population

Youth Development

Projects that provide opportunities for our young people to thrive, to be safe and to live in a nurturing environment.

Human Services

Strategies where our resources make a difference in addressing persistent community challenges or unmet needs of at-risk neighborhoods.

Economic and Community Development

Efforts that encourage innovation and entrepreneurial solutions to improve quality of life.

One of the Foundation’s original Annual Reports pictured with images of Chatham Village, a housing project designed during the Great Depression to be a model for providing both employment and a place for community.

Family of Funds

Industrialist Henry C. Frick established the Henry Clay Frick Educational Commission in 1909.
Henry C. Frick Educational Fund

In 1993, the Henry Clay Frick Educational Commission announced its affiliation with the Buhl Foundation. As a result of the affiliation, the Commission was renamed the Henry C. Frick Educational Fund of the Buhl Foundation. The Frick Fund was established in 1909 by industrialist Henry C. Frick who suggested that “the fund be used in connection with public schools and for the improvement of work done therein.” Today, the Frick Fund continues to support grants for public schools from kindergarten to high school, especially serving disadvantaged and at-risk populations in the region. Specific interests include: science and math education, arts education, teacher professional opportunities and organization that promote strong public education leadership.

McCreery Memorial Fund

The McCreery Fund was established in 1938 by the will of Emilie McCreery in honor of her parents. The McCreery Fund joined the Buhl family of funds in 1955. Grants are available to nonprofits that focus on furthering musical education and music awareness for young people in the Pittsburgh region.

Frick and McCreery grants are awarded in three year cycles. The next cycle begins July 1, 2021 and interested applicants should follow Buhl’s typical application requirements. Applications will be considered and reviewed in the Spring of 2021.

Interested in applying?

The initial process to apply is the same for all funds.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW