ASJA Charitable Trust's Llewellyn Miller Fund
The Llewellyn Miller Fund of the American Society of Journalists and Authors
was created in 1972. It is named in honor of Llewellyn Miller, an early
officer of the ASJA who died of cancer. The financial problems brought on by
her illness galvanized the Society into starting a fund to help other
professional writers who may be in similar straits in the future. The Fund
was established through many small contributions from ASJA members and a
matching grant from the Reader's Digest Foundation. It is administered
through the ASJA Charitable Trust, a tax-exempt charity chartered by New
York State as a nonprofit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code. Since 1982, the Fund has awarded more than seventy
grants to established free-lance writers in twelve states who, because of
advancing age, illness, or disability, are unable to work. A writer need not
be a member of ASJA to qualify for a grant. However, a grant recipient must
establish a record of past professional freelance writing over a sustained
period of years. The Fund does not award grants to beginning freelances
seeking funding for writing projects, nor does it fund works-in-progress of
any kind.
To qualify for a grant, a writer must be sixty years of age or older, or be
physically disabled. Among the recipients have been writers representing a
wide diversity of backgrounds and interests, with an impressive list of
honors and credentials among them. Several years ago a new grant category
was established, providing for professional freelances undergoing an
"extraordinary professional crisis." Several grants have been made in this
category.
Each year dozens of such talented and deserving people appeal to the
Llewellyn Miller Fund. For many, the Fund represents their last hope for
help.
Contributions, which are tax-deductible, can be sent to the:
Llewellyn Miller Fund
American Society of Journalists and Authors Charitable Trust
1501 Broadway, Suite 302
New York, NY 10036
Checks should be made out to "ASJA Charitable Trust" with the notation, "for the Llewellyn Miller Fund."
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