HANCOCK COUNTY — Christmas came early for 38 local nonprofits this summer, as the Hancock County Community Foundation handed out more than $160,000 in grants through its 2021 annual grant-giving campaign.
Recipients have been stopping by the foundation’s office in Greenfield to receive their checks, the last of which was disbursed this week.
They were awarded a collective $163,810 in grants, which were announced last month.
The Nameless Creek Youth Camp plans to use the $5,000 it received to pave part of its parking lot, in order to make The Lodge at Nameless Creek more accessible.
The camp’s president, Jerry Bell, said he doesn’t know what local nonprofits like his would do if it weren’t for the hard work the community foundation’s board members and staff do to manage and distribute funds.
“They are angels in the flesh,” said Bell.
Joanna Crump, finance director for the Hancock County Children’s Choir, feels the same way.
“The community foundation is critical to the community in many ways. They serve non-profits very well, and the grants one important component of that,” she said.
The choir received a $4,000 grant from the foundation this year to support its operating budget, which covers the director’s salary and venue fees.
“We sincerely appreciate their vote of confidence in our programming,” said Crump.
“They have their finger on the pulse of the community and what’s needed. They have limited funds available and are forced to make tough decisions, so it’s a real compliment to receive funds from them,” she said.
The financial boost is especially needed as the community recovers from the COVID crisis, which hit all nonprofits hard.
“The funds are critical for us being able to continue our programming through these challenging times,” said Crump, who recently helped the choir celebrate its 10th anniversary.
Nonprofits like the choir wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the generosity of the community foundation and the people who support it, she said.
Overseeing the annual grant cycle was a welcome return to normal for foundation president Mary Gibble, who was forced to shift gears and create a community relief fund to help nonprofits in crisis due to the pandemic last year.
Gibble said the work done on this year’s annual grant cycle was a great feeling of returning to business as usual, by helping nonprofits get back to their routine work throughout the county.
Whereas last year’s funds were distributed on an unrestricted basis, this year’s annual grant cycle awarded funds to nonprofits in three different areas: operating, programming and capital projects.
Gibble said it’s an honor for her and her fellow foundation staff and board members to serve the nonprofits which serve the community so well.
“We’re just grateful to donors and to the community that make it possible for us to make these grants. Without the generosity of people who work through the community foundation, we wouldn’t be able to make the significant impact that we’re able to make through grant making” she said.
“It’s all about our donors. It’s really an honor and a privilege to steward those dollars on their behalf.”
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A list of grant recipients is on Page A5,
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The Hancock County Community Foundation recently awarded more than $160,00 to 38 nonprofits serving Hancock County, through its 2021 annual grant cycle.
Applications for next year’s round of grants will open up to all 501c3 organizations, including churches, in the first quarter of next year.
For more information on how to apply, or how to donate funds to be distributed through the foundation, visit givehcgrowhc.org or call 317-462-8870.
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Following is a list of nonprofits and projects receiving grants from the Hancock County Community Foundation’s 2021 Annual Grant Cycle:
Agape Therapeutic Riding Services, Inc.
Stirrup Success & Recovery (partnership with The Landing and Talitha Koum)
$7,409
Brown’s Chapel Wesleyan
Project Community Shelter
$3,500
Cumberland Metropolitan Police Department
Flock Safety camera
$2,500
Fortville Action, Inc.
Trailer for storage
$5,000
Fortville Christian Church
Civil Design fees towards the new Food Distribution Center for the Fortville Area Resource Mission
$5,000
Fortville-Vernon Township Public Library
Read out LOUD! Play-based storytime
$4,000
Frenzy Animal Rescue, Inc.
Medical and training funds
$7,850
Friends Of Hancock County CASA Inc.
Technology and books for a professional library
$2,490
Friends Of Recovery, Inc.
Next Steps transitional program
$5,000
Friends Of The Theater – Hancock County, Inc.
Ricks Curtain Project
$3,000
FUSE Inc
Young Adult and Teen Social Program
$5,143
Greenfield Hancock Animal Management
Pre-Adoption Spay/Neuter
$7,850
Hancock 4 Kids
Technology and professional development
$3,000
Hancock County Children’s Choir
Life-skills Mentoring and Performing Arts Program
$4,000
Hancock County Humane Society
HCHS Animal Health and Welfare Fund
$7,850
Hancock County Senior Services
Staying Connected with our Clients – guidance for using client data and getting feedback
$4,000
Hancock County COAD
Disaster Preparedness Program
$3,000
Hancock County Veterans Park
Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Awareness Banners
$1,181
Indiana Women In Need Foundation
Hancock County Survivor Support Program
$3,200
Lambswear
Program growth in Hancock County
$4,000
Love INC Of Greater Hancock County
Expansion of Love INC’s Transformational Ministry Program
$5,000
Meals On Wheels Of Hancock County
Meal Delivery
$5,000
Mental Health Partners Of Hancock County
Behavior Care Assistance Program
$3,000
Mt. Comfort Church
Mt. Comfort Church Gym Floor Replacement Project
$5,000
Nameless Creek Camp
Lodge at Nameless Creek Parking Lot Pavement
$5,000
New Palestine Main Street
Nichols Building interior updates for energy savings, updating and functionality
$3,100
New Palestine United Methodist Church
Celebrations Child Care Ministry & Preschool – Outdoor Recreation Equipment: Noah’s Ark Playset
$5,000
Partners For Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)
P.A.W.S. Feline Fix
$7,850
Regreening Greenfield, Inc.
TreeKeeper Urban Forest Management Software and Support
$3,500
Servants At Work, Inc.
Ramps in Hancock County
$6,000
Shirley Community Visionaries
Shirley Building Facade Improvement
$3,000
Shirley Police Department
Pro-Vision Body Cam
$2,196
Special Olympics Hancock County
Technology
$2,000
The Landing Place
Kitchen Moderinzation/Remodel Capital Improvement Project
$5,000
Town Of McCordsville
Old School Park Project: street light
$3,191
Vineyard Community Church At Mt. Comfort, Inc.
Repairs and updates to the Vineyard Community Church at Mt. Comfort Outreach Building
$2,000
YMCA Of Greater Indianapolis
Hancock County Before and After School, Financial Support for Families in Need
$4,000
Zoey’s Place Child Advocacy Center
Zoey’s Place Programming
$5,000
TOTAL
$163,810
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