Community Foundation awards more than $149,000 in new grants | News, Sports, Jobs

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ALPENA — The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan recently awarded a new round of Community Impact Grants and Northeast Michigan Women’s Giving Circle grants covering a four-county area that includes Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and Presque Isle counties. CFNEM’s Board of Directors recently approved 50 new grants totaling $149,585.

Community Impact Grants totaling $104,797 were awarded to the following organizations:

∫ Alpena Child Care and Development Center — $1,000 for a toddler play kitchen;

∫ Alpena County — $3,000 for Starfish Aquatic Institute;

∫ Alpena Gymnastics, Inc. — $1,000 for the Little Tykes project;

∫ Alpena Senior Center — $5,000 for meals on wheels;

∫ Association of Lifelong Learners — $1,800 for project to expand hybrid meeting equipment for improved user experience;

∫ Town of Barton Volunteer Fire Department – ​​$2,000 for emergency shelter;

∫ Boys & Girls Club of Alpena — $5,000 for Triple Play (Mind, Body and Soul) program;

∫ Common Ground — $5,000 for Northeast Michigan Behavioral Health Emergency Care;

∫ Green Township Fire Department — $2,218 for Green Township Fire Department light towers;

∫ Habitat for Humanity Northeast Michigan — $3,418 for the Building Affordable Housing for Alpena project;

∫ Harrisville Arts Council — $4,000 for the Harrisville Arts Council mural project;

∫ Harrisville United Methodist Church — $5,000 for the Feeding Alcona County Families project;

∫ Heroes — $3,000 for Heroes Events and Start-up project;

∫ Hillman Area Citizens – $5,000 to purchase a generator;

∫ Hubbard Lake Baptist/Bible Church — $3,500 for the Feeding the Hungry project;

∫ Junior Achievement of North Central Michigan — $3,000 for the Revitalizing Junior Achievement program;

∫ Lions Club of Michigan Service Foundation — $5,000 to expand Mobile Pantry service;

∫ NEMCSA — $5,000 for the Ensuring Exploration in the Winter months project;

∫ Park Family Foundation, LLC — $2,000 to purchase Thunder Bay/APlex Martial Arts Equipment;

∫ Pegasus Springs Therapeutic Riding Center — $2,500 for Strengthening Families/Year-round Support and Scholarships;

∫ THE POWER! Book Bags — $2,000 for EmPoWeRing Little Learners Project in Alpena, Montmorency and Presque Isle;

∫ Presque Isle Conservation District — $3,320 for Wetland Trail Improvement at Herman Vogler Conservation Area;

∫ Presque Isle County Historical Museum — $4,000 to renovate the Bradley House roof;

∫ Presque Isle Township Fire Department — $3,123 for 911 Reflective Sign project;

∫ Presque Isle Township Museum Society, Inc. — $1,000 for the Crapo Lifeboat Restoration Project;

∫ Rayola Inc. — $5,000 for the Foster Children of Northern Michigan project;

∫ St. John Lutheran School — $5,000 for Pam Stenzel — Sex, Love, and Relationships Program;

∫ Poetry Lab — $1,300 for After School Poetry Club Poetry Lab;

∫ The Stone House Studio — $2,000 for the Writing Your Story project;

∫ The Sunset Project — $3,000 for the Local Creative Highlights project;

∫ Thunder Bay Curling Club — $1,200 for Learn to Curl program;

∫ Thunder Bay Theater — $3,418 for Thunder Bay Theater Lighting Equipment Upgrade;

∫ Touchstone Services Incorporated (Light of Hope) — $3,000 for the Media Center project.

Community impact grants are awarded at CFNEM through two different grant cycles throughout the year. For purposes of giving, the Community Endowment Fund consists of the Community Endowment Fund, the Genite Family Fund, the Chuck and Kathy Ingle Fund, the Lappan Fund, the Neva Nelson Memorial Fund, the Panel Processing Fund, the Pfeiffenberger Fund, the Marianne Kalivoda Hall Memorial Fund, The Reitz Family Fund, the Stevens Fund and the Weinkauf Fund. Additional funds supporting grants for this cycle include the Ann M. Kuntz Fund, the Mr. and Mrs. OB Eustis Memorial Fund, the Montmorency County General Fund, the Wayne Wire Cloth Products Fund, the Alcona General Fund, the Alcona County Health Care Initiative Fund, United Communities of Presque Isle Fund, Lewiston Industrial Development Fund, Presque Isle General Fund, Huron Shores Health Fund and Spendable Tobacco Fund.

The Community Foundation also approved $44,788 through the annual Northeast Michigan Women’s Giving Circle grant round. These grants are reviewed and recommended annually by a committee of 10 WGC members who serve two-year terms. WGC grants are awarded for issues important to women in Northeast Michigan from the WGC Endowment Fund.

This year’s WGC grants include:

∫ Alcona Youth Baseball and Softball — $1,000 for facility upgrade project;

∫ Alpena and Presque Isle Child Abuse and Neglect Team — $2,850 for Fall Family Laundry and Pantry Support Project;

∫ Alpena County — $1,250 for lifeguard training project at Alpena Plaza pool;

∫ Alpena First United Methodist — $1,500 for Hearts to Home Project;

∫ Alpena Gymnastics, Inc — $500 for youth development project;

∫ Alpena Senior Center — $5,000 for Meals on Wheels project;

∫ Friends of the Alpena Courts — $5,000 for the Bay View Reconstruction Project;

∫ Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary — $2,588 for the Sanctuary Labyrinth project;

∫ Grace Lutheran Church — $3,000 for Grace Lutheran Church’s Little Food Pantry Project;

∫ Hubbard Lake Baptist/Bible Church — $5,000 for the Feeding the Hungry project;

∫ THE POWER! Book bags — $4,000 for the Little Learners of Alpena, Montmorency and Presque Isle project;

∫ Rayola Inc. — $4,000 for the Rayola Comfort Packages project;

∫ Sunrise Center Inc. — $1,000 for the Recovery Recreation project;

∫ The Poetry Lab — $1,500 for the HOMES Haiku Competition project;

∫ The Sunset Project — $1,500 for the Local Creative Highlights project;

∫ Thunder Bay Folk Society, Inc. — $3,500 for the Thunder Bay Folk Festival project;

∫ United Way of Northeast Michigan — $1,600 for Project Connect — Montmorency County.

The next opportunity to submit grant applications is through the Northeast Michigan Youth Advisory Council for youth programs in Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and/or Presque Isle counties. Apply online through the Community Foundation grant portal at cfnem.org. Applications can be made until October 15.

CFNEM is a charity committed to providing people who care about the future of our area with unique and effective ways to support their community now and for generations to come. Led by a volunteer board of local citizens, the foundation oversees a pool of permanently endowed funds from a wide range of donors. Gifts of all sizes from individuals, families, businesses and agencies are invested in a balanced, well-managed portfolio to build endowments, enabling support for students and local community nonprofits now and forever.