Montgomery County Community Foundation gathered Tuesday to award grant checks to 14 grant recipients in the second and final grant cycle of 2022.
MCCF Chief Executive Officer Kelly Taylor welcomed everyone and thanked the nonprofit leaders for the work they do in the community. Fund owners in attendance were also thanked and recognized, for without fund owners, the grants would not be possible.
Listed by area of interest, the following grants were awarded:
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
• Fuzzy Bear Preschool and Daycare, $23,410 — Striving to create a safe and healthy building for children and staff, the funds will be used for a variety of building improvements such as new staff restroom upstairs, a screened in porch, painting, new ceiling fans, and more.
New Beginnings Child Care, $80,080 — This award will provide transition support as they move from being a ministry affiliated with a church, to a nonprofit entity of their own. This process brings many adjustments and changes. Right-sizing the staff will allow them, the largest childcare provider in the county, to function more effectively and efficiently.
• Willson preschool, Crawfordsville School Corp., $11,000 — A preschool climbing wall will be installed in the school’s gymnasium. Climbing wall activities promote gross motor development, and are associated with a greater likelihood of success in academics and in social/emotional development. It will also provide a fun indoor activity when outdoor recess isn’t possible.
EDUCATION
• North Montgomery School Corporation, $16,700 — Detect, Deter, Intervene and Educate. This is the approach the corporation is taking on vaping. Funds will be used to purchase and install vape detectors at North Montgomery Middle School. Along with preventative education, an intervention course has been developed for those found to be vaping.
• Montgomery County Educational Foundation, $25,000 — MCEF offers grants to local teachers. Teachers may apply for grants to support enrichment projects and activities that aren’t otherwise funded by the school budget. Awards are made in all areas, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), the arts, speech, language, and more.
HEALTH
• Crawfordsville Community School Corporation, $10,000 — Funds will be used for the Health & Welfare of students corporation-wide who need financial assistance with expenses for eye exams, glasses, dental care, medications, and mental health assessments. Funds are also used for CPR training and supplies, and various student health education.
HISTORY, ARTS & CULTURE
• Athens Arts Gallery, $8,100 — Athens will host a National Juried Exhibition in the summer/fall of 2023. This will be their sixth Salon and third Juried National Exhibition. In an excerpt from their request, Athens states, “the experience of art is why cities are loved not just lived in. A loved city is supported by its citizens.”
• Carnegie Museum of Montgomery County, $10,500 — This storytelling grant will include the nationally renowned traveling exhibit, The Amazing Castle. Additional programming, such as professional storytellers and a theater workshop will complement the exhibit.
HUMAN SERVICES
• Dusk to Dawn Bereavement, $16,145 — Education and Counseling: Building a Stronger Healthier Community is the theme for their 10th Anniversary Celebration. A variety of events geared to bereavement and mental health will take place throughout the year. Look for the calendar of events early next year.
• Food Finders Food Bank, $5,000 — According to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study, Montgomery County’s food insecurity rate is 11.5%. Over half don’t quality for SNAP meaning they rely on the charitable food sources. These funds will help support three Mobile Food Pantries in Montgomery County in 2023.
• Grace and Mercy Food Pantry, $50,000 — Since early 2021, the number of families being served each month has doubled. These funds will be used to purchase a sprinter-type van to pick up food from their various suppliers, such as Walmart, Food Finders, and Caito’s. Any excess funds will be used to buy additional food.
• Women’s Resource Center, $7,000 — Funds will be used for medical services and for items for the Great Expectation’s educational program. WRC provides an invaluable link to the local health care system.
YOUTH
• Boys & Girls Club, $32,500 — Twenty-two years of serving children and their families has taken a toll on the club’s flooring. Funds will be used to install new LVT flooring throughout the building, except for the gymnasium and the multipurpose room.
• Montgomery County 4-H, $35,335 — 4-H building improvements and equipment will allow the facility to better accommodate educational programs for youth and for the community. Safety accommodations for the new range hood will be made and new audio visual equipment and an ice machine will be purchased.
The grants were made possible by the following MCCF Field of Interest Funds:
Marian J. Morrison Fund, Women of Wisdom Fund, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: honoring Rev. Chris Hotopp-Zachary, Mary Vi Leaming RN and Meda Lorton, A. F. Ramsey Fund, Herman Dicks Fund, Duke Energy Pass-through Fund, Maude Dockins Trust Fund, and the Faye O. and Anna Winter Schenck Fund.
And from these MCCF Unrestricted Funds: Samuel L. and Eva Fern Boots Fund, Community Fund, Tony and Cindy Cosenza Fund, Tom and Dolores Crews Fund, Dr. Fred and Elizabeth Daugherty Trust Fund, Irwin Lee Detchon Fund, Maude Dockins Fund, First Merchants Charitable Foundation Fund, Barbara and Larry Frye Fund, Thomas and Mary Beth Harmon Fund, Carl F. and Margaret Henthorn Fund, Dennis and Dee Hohlbein Fund, Larry D. Servies and Wanda R. Hopkins Fund, Hoosier Heartland State Bank Fund, Walter Hulet Fund, Max W. Johnson Fund to honor Mary Francis “Fran” Johnson, Hubert and Martha Massing Fund, Nucor Fund , Gloria and Marvin Oliver Fund, Morris and Barbara Odle Family Fund, James G. and Susan Smith Fund, Kathleen and John Steele Fund, Max K. Tannenbaum Trust Fund, John T. Taylor Charitable Fund, Leonard and Louise Winchell Fund, Damon C. and Bernice Seaman Wray Fund, and the Roland Brooks and Helen Johnson Wynne Fund.
MCCF manages more than 240 endowed funds, each established by donors with the desire to make Montgomery County a better place to live. Since 1991, more than $26 million in grants and scholarships has been awarded to agencies and students in Montgomery County.
To learn more, visit https://www.mccf-in.org/unrestricted-grant-cycle to review the eligibility guidelines and learn about the application process. Direct questions to Cheryl Keim, Grants & Community Relations Director, at 765-362-1267 or cheryl@mccf-in.org.
