Spring Grant Awards Announced
Across Charlevoix County, the Community Foundation’s grant-making will provide for what matters most now while taking care to also move our communities forward for the future. This spring and summer, our conservancies will enhance nature preserves in the county and along our lakeshores, including making our lakes more universally accessible. Children in all Charlevoix County schools will have access to music education with the Dorothy Gerber Strings Program. Summer concerts will entertain in Charlevoix and on Beaver Island, and communities will benefit from arts, music, and dance programs around the county. Our food pantries will feed more families and will offer cooking classes. Our hospitals will offer assistance to patients in need. Habitat for Humanity will acquire new lots on which to build more affordable housing for our region. “The Community Foundation provided funding for initiatives and projects from urgent needs to the arts and in every community across the County,” notes Community Foundation President Chip Hansen.
Charlevoix County youth will also feel the positive effects of this grant cycle. The Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) updated the youth needs assessment this year and was able to immediately address one of the top concerns – mental health programming. Child and Family Services of Northwest Michigan will offer expanded trauma informed services in Charlevoix County schools, thanks to the YAC. This grant cycle, the YAC reviewed and supported a total of more than $21,000 in programs that respond to the needs of their peers county-wide. “It’s important to us that the youth dollars really benefit Charlevoix County youth,” said YAC member, Gus Scheier. “We are grateful for the opportunity to better our community and we feel good about the impact we are making with these spring grant awards.” The YAC is responsive to programs that affect two or more communities in Charlevoix County and that have a youth focus.
The Community Foundation responded to these requests with almost $187,000 in grant awards this spring because of donors who wish to make a difference in Charlevoix County. When individuals, couples, families, and businesses give back to this place they love, the Community Foundation can connect their support with deserving organizations. “It's always such an honor to be a part of the grant making process,” said grant-making Committee Member and Community Foundation Trustee, Monica Kroondyk. “What an inspiration to know that with the generosity of our community members, the Charlevoix County Community Foundation is able to support the important work our local non-profits are doing, from feeding the hungry, to working on solutions to the housing crisis. The money that C3F grants these organizations will have a lasting impact for generations to come.” Click here for a complete list of grants made through the spring cycle.
A charitable organization dedicated to improving and enriching life in the area, the Charlevoix County Community Foundation accepts gifts from individuals, families, businesses and civic groups and manages them as permanent endowments. While a portion of the funds are utilized to support grantmaking, the principal of the endowment continues to grow, providing ongoing charitable capital to benefit Charlevoix County’s residents—now and in the future.
Since it was founded in 1992, the Community Foundation’s net assets have grown to more than $40 million. Grants and scholarships totaling more than $26 million have been distributed to enhance and enrich the quality of life for everyone in Charlevoix County—and for generations to come.
The next deadline for submitting a grant request is Tuesday, October 1, 2019. The Community Foundation welcomes inquiries about applying for grants anytime at 231-536-2440.