GREENWICH, Conn. – Four teams of women will go all out to “pitch their peers” as they compete for a $30,000 grant to help a Greenwich nonprofit.

The action is hosted by Pitch Your Peers Inc. of Greenwich, which is announcing its inaugural Pitch Meeting. It will be held Thursday, Oct. 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. at The First Presbyterian Church of Greenwich, on West Putnam Avenue.

PYP is a new grant-funding 501(c)3 organization made up of 37 Greenwich women.

“Collectively, we fund grants to nonprofits that serve our community.  Our membership is invitation only, and this highly curated group of women is comprised of an essential mix of working and stay-at-home mothers, who are all active in local philanthropy,” the group said in a statement.

The four founding members of PYP are all Greenwich women: Brooke Bohnsack, Dara Johnson, Nina Lindia and Rachael LeMasters.

Unlike other grant-funding organizations, PYP has no RFP process. Instead, the members come forward as Grant Champions to pitch the membership on the charities for which they are passionate.

The Grant Champions research their charity and create a sales pitch to be delivered at the annual Pitch Meeting.  The membership then votes, and the winning Grant Champion is awarded a $30,000 grant to the nonprofit she successfully pitched.

The PYP process highlights the membership’s existing skill set of sales, marketing and public-speaking, all while educating the membership about deserving charities in Greenwich.

This year’s PYP Grant Champions are:

  • Karina Bailey and Julie Karish: B*Cured
  • Monica Huang: Byram Park Pool Project
  • Steviann Martines:  Community Centers Inc. of Greenwich
  • Karina Solomon and Lisa Getson: Kids in Crisis

Also, students from the Advanced Broadcast Journalism class at Sacred Heart Greenwich will be filming the process, interviewing the founders and Grant Champions, and creating a short video package about PYP.

“We are thrilled to have these aspiring film-makers, under the direction of their visionary teacher, Ellyn Stewart, participate in our Pitch Meeting,” the group said.

The mission of Pitch Your Peers is to engage women in philanthropy and to collectively fund grants to charitable initiatives that serve the Town of Greenwich. The goal is to identify unmet needs in the community and provide grants worthy of impactful change to Greenwich for nonprofits.

For more information, and to see a list of members and their bios, visit: www.pitchyourpeers.org and email pitchyourpeers@gmail.com.