Katz Amsterdam awards $1.5 million to two Park City nonprofits

Members of the Wasatch Immigration Project’s legal team, including new staff attorneys Jessica Hamilton and Kaite Hogan, gather at the nonprofit’s Park City office. Wasatch Immigration Project provides free immigration legal services and education to individuals and families across the Wasatch Back. The Park City-based nonprofit will receive $600,000 over three years through the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust’s new Catalyst Grant Program. Photo: Wasatch Immigration Project

PC Tots and Wasatch Immigration Project will receive three years of funding through the foundation’s new Catalyst Grant Program.

PARK CITY, Utah — Two Park City nonprofits will receive $1.5 million over three years through a new grant program that supports organizations serving families in mountain communities.

The Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust announced Tuesday that PC Tots and Wasatch Immigration Project were selected for the inaugural class of its Catalyst Grant Program. PC Tots will receive $900,000, while Wasatch Immigration Project will receive $600,000.

The Park City organizations are among seven nonprofits in Utah and Colorado sharing $4.5 million in three-year grants through the new program.

The Catalyst Grant Program provides flexible, multi-year funding to organizations working in four areas: early childhood education, food security, immigrant services, and K-12 out-of-school programs. Katz Amsterdam said it plans to make additional grants to organizations in mountain communities each year.

Park City Library's PC Tots daycare facility. — PC Tots provides year-round early childhood education and child care for Park City families. The nonprofit will receive $900,000 over three years through the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust’s new Catalyst Grant Program. Photo: TownLift

For PC Tots, the funding will support its work providing full-day, year-round early childhood education in Park City.

The nonprofit operates three Park City locations and provides income-based tuition assistance to many of the families it serves. PC Tots says about 80% of its students receive monthly tuition scholarships.

“Who will raise Park City’s next generation if the families raising them can’t afford to live here?” PC Tots Development Director Mitzi Scheerer said in the grant announcement. “This investment will help us strengthen opportunities for children and educators and build a brighter tomorrow for the families and community we serve.”

Founded in 2023, Wasatch Immigration Project provides free immigration legal services to people and families across the Wasatch Back. Its work includes asylum cases, U visas, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status cases, and other immigration matters.

“For our clients, immigration assistance is not a luxury; it’s a necessity,” Executive Director Maggie AbuHaidar said.

The organization also provides legal education and partners with volunteer attorneys and nonprofits to expand access to representation in the region.

“Our vision is a Wasatch Back where every person impacted by the immigration system has access to quality legal advice and representation,” AbuHaidar said. “Equipping our neighbors with information and knowledge of their rights helps them feel more secure in their community.”

The five other inaugural Catalyst recipients are based in Eagle and Summit counties in Colorado and include organizations focused on food access, immigrant services and youth programs.

Katz Amsterdam said it has contributed more than $86 million to philanthropic efforts since 2008, including more than $34 million in mountain resort communities.