Helping Hands

The Helping Hands Fund assists students who are experiencing a short-term financial crisis for which they could not have been prepared, and for which no other resources are immediately available to the student. This Fund is supported by generous donations from members of the community and provides a tangible lifeline to students at particularly tenuous and pivotal moments in their lives.

Assistance can be used to help pay for housing, utilities, transportation, food, childcare, medical expenses, or costly repairs (automobile, heating system, water heater, etc.).

Thank you!

Helping Hands Student: ‘It’s a scary time’

While $250 may not sound like a lot of money, it can make a world of difference to a Gateway student facing housing or food insecurity, unemployment, illness, or a financial emergency; for example, someone like Chelsea L. Celotto, a fulltime nursing student who expects to graduate in May. “This (assistance) will really help me to pay my health insurance,” she explains. “My entire weekends are based on working to pay my bills throughout the month. It’s definitely a scary time, especially with no end in sight. It makes me extremely anxious and nervous for the future. The assistance helps me to stay afloat for the month. I greatly appreciate this.”