Annelise Conway wants to see a Barrington united, pulled together in its shared philanthropic approach.

Neighbors helping neighbors.

The town supporting those in need.

Less fighting. Less division.

That idea, or goal, is part of what fuels Ms. Conway’s work as the chairwoman of the Spencer Trust, a charitable fund that was established many years ago by a resident who wished to help the “poor and unfortunate” of Barrington. There are millions of dollars in the Trust now, allowing town officials an opportunity to cast a net of support to residents in need.

Last month, the town council, sitting as trustees, discussed the creation of applications for those seeking money from the trust — one of the applications would be for nonprofit charitable organizations that help Barrington residents, and the other would be for individuals who are looking for financial help follow an emergency.

During the meeting, a Barrington resident questioned the distribution of funds in the past and who gets to determine what is an “emergent need” and what is not.

In case of emergency

How much money should the town give to someone in need?

Members of the trust discussed that question and others during the meeting last month, as they focused in on building an application for those who are seeking money from the Spencer Trust Emergent Fund.

Michael Carroll, the president of the town council and a trustee, said pinpointing a maximum limit or similar specifications could be difficult. He said there needs to be some flexibility in the process.

“It’s hard to predict what misfortunes are going to befall some family,” Mr. Carroll said. “We could brainstorm and come up with a bunch of them, but I’d hate to limit it.”

The Emergent Fund is designed to offer financial assistance to residents with an immediate, unexpected need — trustees offered some examples, such as a roof cave-in or an unforeseen medical emergency.

The fund — there is currently $15,000 in the account — is not intended to pay for long-term needs, councilors said. Ms. Conway added that the town is acting in good father, trusting that individuals are not abusing the opportunity.

Jacob Brier said he thought about setting an income limit to the requests, but believes that could be problematic. He said someone could have a high income level from the prior year but face expenses that match, and then experience a medical emergency.

“I wouldn’t want somebody to be excluded who really has no access to cash…” Mr. Brier said. 

The trustee suggested that for someone who owns a home, the town could possibly offer the money in the form of an interest-free loan.

“If you’re below that threshold, it’s a grant,” Mr. Brier said, adding that he wants to avoid creating exclusionary criteria.

Mr. Carroll said the administrators of the Spencer Trust Fund — he referenced town officials Phil Hervey and Debra Page-Trim — were seeking some guidance about how to handle the requests for funding, and believes their job can be a difficult one.

“It’s probably a little daunting to figure out if this is a tragedy that warrants giving $300 or $500…” Mr. Carroll said. “Speaking for myself, I’s be happy with you using your judgment on somebody who needs a new refrigerator or somebody who needs their car repaired so they can get to work. Things like that are perfectly valid emergent needs.”

Mr. Hervey, the town’s planner, spoke during the meeting. He said that he was having a hard time with the situation — he said there were many other sources people could use for financial assistance. He questioned what to do if people request Spencer Trust money to pay a student loan bill.

“It’s just hard to process it,” he said. “And one request could easily take care of the entire fund…”

Mr. Brier suggested a threshold of $1,000 — a request for a larger amount would require approval from the trust. Barrington Town Manager Jim Cunha offered a similar idea, stating that if requests fall into a “gray area,” the administrators could discuss them with Ms. Conway and another trustee.

Carl Kustell suggested that the town could set a maximum limit that is a percentage of the amount in the fund.

The town officials also recommended that the application require details about the recent loss of income or unexpected expense. 

Eventually, the trustees (council members) voted to have the trust administrators draft the actual application, including the suggestions they discussed.

Application for nonprofits

Prior to discussing the Trust’s Emergent Fund application, trustees offered ideas about crafting an application for nonprofit charitable groups that are seeking money from the Spencer Trust. 

Mr. Carroll called for the applications to request how the nonprofit benefits Barrington residents, and the number of residents served (in comparison to the other towns the nonprofits serve). He said that information will ensure that the trust is fulfilling its obligation to take care of the poor and unfortunate of Barrington.

Mr. Carroll also wanted nonprofits to list any additional sources of funding they receive. 

Mr. Brier wanted to known what impact the money would have, and how the nonprofit would be affected if it did not receive money from the Spencer Trust. 

Ms. Conway said she would like the application to include a question about how partial funding would help the group. 

Mr. Hervey offered a suggestion to the trustees — he said the nonprofits should be required to provide annual reporting, just to see if they are underperforming. 

It seems that the Spencer Trustees will be reviewing applications once every six months. The trustees voted 5-0 to approve the creation of an application for nonprofits.

Not just money

While the Spencer Trust meeting focused on applications for funding, Ms. Conway said during a follow-up interview that not all giving needs to be financial. 

Ms. Conway said residents can do “so much” to support their neighbors in need. She said a social media page for Barrington residents offers a hub for those in need to connect with those wanting to help or willing to donate items.

Ms. Conway said there was a Barrington resident who had asked the town for Spencer Trust money to help with landscaping at his home. He is physically disabled and was unable to complete the work himself. Ms. Conway said the trust was not needed for that — she said volunteers could accomplish the same work.

“There’s so much we can do for each other,” she said. 

Ms. Conway said that the philanthropic nature of the community can do much to bring people together, span divides and lessen the divisiveness that has surfaced in recent years. 

Who decides what is an ‘emergent need’?

It was not all good news shared during the recent Spencer Trust meeting.

Barrington resident Waffa Freij described some frustrations she experienced with the Spencer Trust. She said there was a lack of transparency when trying to receive Spencer Trust money previously, and spoke of questions she asked current and prior council members that had gone unanswered. 

Ms. Freij asked the trustees who gets to decide what is an emergent need and what is not./

She said a student loan could be an emergent need, as could a water bill or electric bill. (There had been some prior discussion during the meeting where trustees said student loans and utility bills were likely not considered emergent needs as they were expected expenses.)

Ms. Freij also referenced possible inequities between how renters are treated by the Spencer Trust compared to those folks who own homes. But Trustees said the town’s home repair program was now also available to property tenants and not just those who own houses in Barrington.

Ms. Freij argued that money from the Trust should not be used to pay for salaries of those people hired to serve as administrators.

Toward the end of her comments, Ms. Freij offered a positive remark. She thanked town officials for trying to create a clear process for requesting Spencer Trust money.