Nelson announces more than $124,000 in security grants for local nonprofits

Rep. Napoleon Nelson    April 14, 2022 | 1:21 PM

HARRISBURG, April 14 – State Rep. Napoleon Nelson, D-Montgomery, announced today three organizations in the 154th Legislative District will receive Nonprofit Security Grants.

The grant program funds security enhancement projects for churches, synagogues and other nonprofit organizations serving diverse communities across the commonwealth. The local recipients include:

  • Congregation Adath Jeshurun: $25,000.
  • Yeshivas Ohr Hachaim (DBA Mesivta Yesodei Yisroel): $75,000.
  • Reconstructing Judaism: $24,967.

““I am grateful that I can bring these much-needed resources back to our district, but I wish it wasn’t necessary,” Nelson said. “It is unconscionable to me that we must take these extraordinary steps to ensure all people can feel safe where they worship.”

The grants, administered through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, may be used for the following:

  • Safety and security planning.
  • Purchase of safety and security equipment.
  • Purchase of security-related technology including, but not limited to, metal detectors, protective lighting, surveillance equipment, special emergency communications equipment, electronic locksets, deadbolts, trauma kits, and theft-control devices.
  • Safety and security training.
  • Threat awareness and response training.
  • Upgrades to existing structures that enhance safety and security.
  • Vulnerability and threat assessments.
  • Specialty-trained canines.
  • Any other safety- or security-related project that enhances safety or security of the nonprofit organization.

The grant program was established in 2019 after the Tree of Life shootings in Pittsburgh in October 2018.

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