b'THE COLLECTIVE IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE ACROSS THE REGIONPOWER NETWORKLast year, The CommunityArt Center to enhance the neighborhood around the Foundation of Westmorelandhouse, on which construction began in May. County convinced 20 nonprofits WestCo Nonprofit Network, launched in March to look past daily work demands 2018, has forged connections among Westmoreland and band together to buildCountys nonprofit organizations, facilitating coordina-relationships. This year,tion among the myriad groups, which, in turn, enables membership is growing and them to use limited funds more effectively and assume joint projects have launched. leadership roles in the community.The vision, says Phil Koch, executive director of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland DANIEL GIOVANNELLIwants to erect a giant rabbit, a tributeCounty, an affiliate of The Pittsburgh Foundation, is to both art and play, in a small Greensburg park. As thefor the WestCo Network to pull together the countys executive director of Central Westmoreland Habitatnonprofits, creating synergy that will strengthen the for Humanity, Giovannelli says home construction,whole sector. We want to unify the work we do and use not bunny building, would have been his sole focusour collective power to improve the lives of the people not long ago. we serve, Koch says of the network, which operates But then WestCo Nonprofit Network happened.under the auspices of the Foundation. Participating inand helping planits programsOnly a little more than a year old, the network made Giovannelli think differently as Habitat pre- provides monthly educational seminars on topics the pared to construct a house on a Greensburg lot thatnonprofits request; it advocates on issues common to abuts a park. Before the WestCo Nonprofit Network,many of the nonprofits missions; and it strengthens Giovannelli would not have conceived discussingnonprofits with grants to improve management and Greensburg park improvement with the Latrobeplanning.Art Center.The bulk of the support for this venture comes Now, Giovannelli is working with both thefrom the BNY Mellon Foundation of Southwestern Greensburg Community Development Corp. and thePennsylvania. 24'