Greater Green Bay Community Foundation awards over $82,000 to 20 local non-profit programs

-- Over half of the grants from this grant cycle support programs for children and families --

GREEN BAY, Wis. –  The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation has awarded over $82,000 in grants to 20 local non-profit programs. The grants were awarded based on a competitive application process. Funding was provided through the Community Foundation’s Funds for Greater Green Bay and in partnership with many generous donor advisors. The grants were approved by the Community Foundation’s Board of Directors at their quarterly meeting.

Over half of the grants support programming for families and children.

“Families in Northeast Wisconsin have been hit hard by economic challenges,” commented Greater Green Bay Community Foundation President David Pamperin. “We believe it is important to support programs that build healthy families because healthy families are the core building blocks of a vibrant community.”

Five of the grants support summer programming for children:

An additional seven grants support general programming for children and families:

• The Einstein Project was awarded $3,200 towards the purchase of balancing & weighing units. The Einstein Project provides support for science education in Wisconsin by offering hands-on, inquiry-based science curriculum.  The Balancing & Weighing Units introduce students to the relationship between balance and weight through experiences with a beam balance.�

• Encompass Early Education and Care, Inc. received $5,000 to assist them in offering childcare scholarships for homeless families while parents seek or retain employment and/or education and training to enable them to become self-supporting.

• Family and Childcare Resources of NEW was given a $6,365 towards childcare for ELL classes at the Fort Howard Family Resource Center. Family and Childcare Resources works with Literacy Green Bay to provide ELL classes at the Fort Howard Family Resource Center. The program includes both the English Language Learning Classes as well as childcare because targeted parents cannot often afford childcare, mothers and fathers works separate shifts, and most are unable to attend classes without the service.

• Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin was given $2,500 for the Backpacks of Food for the Weekend program which is offered to children and teens from low-income families who receive hot meals five days a week at both Boys and Girls Club sites in Green Bay. Young people can elect to receive a backpack on Fridays filled with 8 pounds of food (or two balanced meals) for the weekend.�

• Green Bay Head Start received a $1,000 grant towards the Parent Bucks program. Ninety percent of Head Start families meet federal poverty guidelines or receive other qualifying assistance. Parent Bucks is an incentive program that encourages parental participation in the Head Start program. Families can use Parent Bucks to purchase items that cannot be purchased with Food Share benefits, such as household cleaning supplies, personal hygiene items and laundry supplies.  (Federal funds are not allowed to be utilized for this purpose.)

• Jefferson Elementary School received a $900 grant towards the Phuture Phoenix Pilot program for K-5. UWGB’s Phuture Phoenix program has encouraged students, especially low-income or first generation students, to pursue higher education by providing positive role models and instilling the idea that higher education is important, achievable, and accessible at UWGB or other institutions.  They plan to build on the success of the current program that starts at grade 5, by piloting a program at Jefferson Elementary School to expand the curriculum to grades K-5.

• St. Vincent Hospital received $500 towards their NICU upgrade project. St. Vincent Hospital is enhancing the environment for babies in its Newborn Intensive Care Unit through a remodeling project which will minimize premature babies’ exposure to harmful environmental factors.

Eight grants were given to programs serving disabled individuals, the elderly, English Language Learners, and homeless individuals:

• ASPIRO, Inc. was awarded $5,245 towards the purchase of work equipment for disabled clients.  The new equipment will allow ASPIRO to increase the number of work opportunities available to more than 100 ASPIRO clients (with additional productivity and earnings), to improve efficiency for work performed and consistent quality control, and to increase new business opportunities for ASPIRO.
• The Brown County Homeless & Housing Coalition received $5,000 towards A Pair and a Spare, an annual collection of new socks and underwear distributed free of charge from local non-profits to those in need.
• Clarity Care, Inc. received $10,900 towards their Help at Home program. The program provides in-home services to the elderly and disabled according to a sliding-fee scale.  Clarity Care broadens options for those living in poverty, increases their quality of life, and helps reduce the number of premature institutional placements for seniors and people with disabilities by providing services that the clients need (mostly non-medical) in order to remain independent.
• Kingdom Come, Inc. has received $2,500 for their food pantry. The grant will help purchase additional food for the pantry that cannot be purchased from Feeding America or procured from other sources.
• Literacy Green Bay, Inc. received $6,192 towards their English Language Learner (ELL) Summer program. Literacy Green Bay has found that interest for classes in the summer increases, possibly because people are more inclined to attend class even without transportation since they can walk easily in nicer weather. Childcare is provided, and is essential as many participants have children at home from school during the summer.  The grant will be applied to instructional hours, childcare for participants, and testing.
• MyTeam Triumph - Wisconsin Chapter received $1,000 towards the purchase of specialized equipment for disabled athletes. MyTeam Triumph is an athletic ride-along program for children, teens, and adults with disabilities who would not normally be able to experience an endurance event such as a triathlon or road race. The participants with disabilities are “captains” and the athletes who push or pull the captains on the course are their “angels.” The grant will pay for specialized equipment that will be used by multiple athletes over a number of years.
• N.E.W. Curative Rehabilitation, Inc. was awarded a $4,500 grant towards an arts program for those with memory impairment. N.E.W. Curative is the fiscal agent for the Legacies Arts Project which educates caregivers and families and empowers individuals with memory-impairment to benefit from multiple-discipline arts programming as a tool for creative expression.�
• New Community Shelter received a $10,000 grant towards their Emergency Shelter program. The New Community Shelter’s Emergency Shelter program for adults experiencing homelessness served 762 men and women in 2009. The average stay for a resident (35 days) costs approximately $2000 to provide shelter and services.  
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About the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation
Established in 1991, the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation is a non-profit charitable organization that manages more than 500 funds and distributes grants to between 400 and 500 non-profits each year. Community Foundation grants provide funding for programs and services that improve the quality of life in Northeast Wisconsin, supporting human services, education, arts and culture, the environment, and more. Our mission is to inspire and encourage charitable giving in northeastern Wisconsin by connecting people who care with solutions that strengthen our community. For more information, please visit our website: www.ggbcf.org.