GREENFIELD — Years ago, attorneys with Community Legal Aid began a tradition of soliciting donations from their private-sector peers.
Fast forward to 2026 and Community Legal Aid’s annual Access to Justice Campaign has collected $103,000 from residents of Franklin and Hampshire counties.
“This was a particularly successful year, the most successful one we’ve had,” said Thomas Navin, Community Legal Aid’s director of development.
Community Legal Aid provides free civil legal services in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire and Worcester counties. It offers resources to low-income individuals and families facing civil legal problems, as the right to counsel is not broadly guaranteed.
Last year alone, the nonprofit handled at least 9,000 cases involving eviction defense, family law services for survivors of domestic violence, access to public benefits and more. Approximately 1,000 of those cases were for residents in Franklin and Hampshire counties.
Navin said these donations are particularly important during a time of massive cuts to federal funding.
“Our clients really are facing a lot,” Navin said. “The community stepped up in response.”
In the past year, Community Legal Aid saw an increase in the needs of its client households, most of whom earn no more than 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, or $40,000 a year for a family of four.
“Last year brought new challenges, seemingly every day. Cuts to safety net programs affected our clients’ ability to meet their basic needs,” Executive Director Jonathan Mannina said in a statement. “Attacks on due process and other fundamental rights called into question our nation’s commitment to equal justice for all. At the same time, the fate of longstanding federal funding sources for legal services hung in the balance for much of the year.”
Wendy Sibbison, a retired attorney and longtime Greenfield resident, offered a $5,000 match for the Franklin County Access to Justice Campaign after seeing the impact of federal funding cuts on already vulnerable members of her community.
“Working as a VISTA paralegal in Greenfield’s first legal services office over 50 years ago, I saw lawyers giving needy, sometimes desperate people meaningful relief,” she said in a statement. “I know the clients CLA serves today need this relief now more than ever. This gift came naturally, and I plan to repeat it.”
Similarly, Hampshire County campaign volunteers Carrie Baker, Catherine Kay and Michele Kunitz joined with an anonymous donor to offer a combined $15,000 match for all first-time or increased gifts to the organization. The match initiatives resulted in both a record fundraising year and an increase in the number of donors in both counties.
Those who are interested in donating to Community Legal Aid can visit communitylegal.org/giving.
