PORTSMOUTH — Aquidneck Island Land Trust has awarded six grants totaling $10,148 to local community and neighborhood groups through its annual grant program, the Merritt Neighborhood Fund. Grant awards ranged from $998 to $2,500.

Established in 1999 to honor the late Peter M. Merritt, the organization’s president emeritus, the Fund supports projects that strengthen community identity and character, and which model the ethic of land conservation and stewardship through community volunteerism. 

The Land Trust has made these grants each year since its founding, distributing over $191,000 in total. A committee of Land Trust volunteers and Board Members determines the awardees.

Awards were given to the following local applicants:

• Hawk & Handsaw Farm on Moitoza Lane, for community picnic table materials

• Portsmouth Dog Park, for dog-friendly and native plants for the park’s expansion trail

• Town of Portsmouth: ADA-accessible picnic table and a park bench for the Glen Park Playground

“These grants provide significant benefits to our Island communities,” said Terry Sullivan, executive director of the Aquidneck Island Land Trust. “Recipients are planting native plants, addressing stormwater pollution, helping young people connect to nature through gardening and providing ADA-accessible places that provide everyone the opportunity to spend time outside.”

Information on the 2026 Merritt Neighborhood Awards will be announced in March 2026. To help grow the Fund, visit ailt.org/our-work/merritt-fund to donate.