Weston Gives Back: Emergency aid available to residents through Merriam Fund

Editor’s note: Through the end of the year, the Weston Observer is profiling Weston organizations and people assisting those in need during the holiday season.

Weston residents struggling with a financial emergency may be able to get help from the Merriam Fund.

The Merriam Fund was established in 1865 by Charles Merriam, who gave the town $1,000, to assist those whom he called “the silent poor” with financial emergencies. In a letter to the Board of Selectmen, Merriam wrote that the “interest and income shall be paid over not to town paupers but to that class of honest, temperate men and women, who work hard or are prudent and economical, and yet find it difficult to make both ends meet.”

“We’ve kept that idea alive for almost 150 years,” said Chris Palmer, chair of the six-member board of trustees that manages the fund for the town of Weston.

The Merriam Fund has since grown to $300,000, supported solely by donations, and is used to provide grants for Weston residents in need of temporary assistance. There is no income threshold for applicants. The only criterion is that they have an emergency financial need.

“That’s the way it was set forth in 1865 and that’s what we try and follow,” said Palmer, noting all applications and grant awards are confidential.

Read more Weston Gives Back stories: Resident builds nonprofit to treat hygiene-product insecurity, Weston student aims for 1,000 donations for local soup kitchen, St. Vincent de Paul provides food aid in difficult times, Club hosts drive to aid pet owners impacted by food insecurity.

Grants might be for a utility bill, medical or dental bills, excise tax for a car, or perhaps a mortgage payment. Money is never given to the applicant; instead it is paid directly to the vendor.

Applicants are not expected to repay the fund.

“This is an outright grant, and we don’t want them to worry about it. We’re trying to fulfill what I think is Mr. Merriam’s original intention,” Palmer said. “He wanted them to have the money and be able to move on and not have to worry about paying it back.”

Trustee Mary Shaw said applicants are usually interviewed in their home by one or two trustees, which gives them a sense of the applicant’s circumstances and fosters a personal connection.

Because the fund does not provide ongoing payments, the discussion includes the applicant’s plan for back on track financially.

“We don’t make grants that won’t be sustainable. If it won’t put the person back on an even keel so that they can go on living their life, then we are not going to make that grant,” Shaw said.

Over the years, the fund has helped a woman pay for child care expenses while she worked a temporary job until she was awarded her nursing degree, Shaw said. It also helped an applicant make a final tuition payment so he could finish his degree. Another grant paid for the installation of an air conditioner for a woman with asthma.

The trustees will also arrange meetings between the applicant and other town agencies, when it is warranted.

“That’s not part of our mission but we do what’s appropriate. We will refer people to other agencies to do what is best for the applicants,” Shaw said.

Grants are typically $500 to $2,000, Palmer said. Grants totaling more than $1,000 must be approved by the entire board.

Letters appealing for donations have been sent out to all residents. Checks made out to the Merriam Fund can be mailed to Town of Weston – Merriam Fund; P.O. Box 378, Weston, MA 02493.

“People should be aware that they are helping people in Weston who have financial problems,” Shaw said. “Weston is a wealthy town but not everybody is wealthy.”

For more information

To apply for a grant, contact the Weston Select Board at 781-786-5020 or send an email in

confidence to merriamfund@westonma.gov.

To learn more about the fund or to express interest in becoming a trustee, visit

westonma.gov/1295/Trustees-of-the-Merriam-Fund.