Woodford County Community Fund announces 2024 grant recipients Awards $56,315 to local nonprofits this year

WOODFORD COUNTY COMMUNITY FUND announced that $41,815 in grants were awarded by WCCF on December 17th, bringing the total given to local nonprofits in 2024 up to $56,315. Pictured are representatives from many of the local nonprofits who received grants from the Community Fund board members on Tuesday, Dec. 17 at the Woodford County Public Library. Board Members who were present were Stacy Thurman, Bob Rouse, Laurel Hostetter, Melissa Lippert Tomblin and Lucie Chandler.  

On Dec. 17, the Woodford County Community Fund announced the award of competitive grants between $2,500 to $5,000 to 14 Woodford County non-profits totaling $41,815. This brings the total for 2024 to $56,315.00 from the Community Fund to local nonprofit organizations via grants, matching gifts, or a payment toward a pledge.    

Each of the nonprofits who received grants on Dec. 17 applied to the Community Fund’s annual grants program, which funds projects that either enhance an existing program or launches a new initiative in Woodford County.   

Life Adventure Center was one of the recipients. “This grant will help us launch a parent-child resilience-building camp. This is our response to the surgeon general’s statement on toxic levels of stress in parents,” said Julie Breitigan, executive director of the center.    

The Food Pantry will use its grant to help address the food insecurity problem plaguing Woodford County. “We have begun serving many more clients in Woodford County so there is an increased need to give turkeys and fresh holiday meals. We have made changes in the way we allocate food to different-sized families – previously we only had supplies to cover one month, and now this contribution will allow us to provide families with holiday meals throughout the end of the year,” said Ashley Jackson, the new executive director.  

Other recipients of the grants are: Spark Community Café, to expand its capacity to address food insecurity; Youth Engagement Project, or YEP, through the Woodford County Health Department, to reduce the occurrence of high-risk behaviors among students focusing on the time between school dismissal and 6 p.m.; Huntertown Community Interpretive Park, to provide new interpretive environmental education signs; Kentucky Center for Grieving Children and Families, to partner with Woodford County High School to create a grief support group for students; Woodford Habitat for Humanity, to assist with the purchase of a lot to build a home for a family currently living in substandard housing; Theatrical Arts Association, to purchase a computer that enhances the production quality of programs at Woodford Theater; Kaden’s Cause, to help low-wealth families that have lost a child cover the cost of burial; Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary, through Bluegrass Greensource, to enhance signage and operation of the facility to increase student engagement; and Mentors & Meals, to engage with Woodford County middle school students and prevent academic regression during the summer.  

In addition to the competitive grants just awarded, the Community Fund has been an active community partner in Woodford County. This year, it contributed $500 to each of the seven local nonprofits that participated in the 2024 GoodGiving Challenge: Woodford Habitat for Humanity, Spark Community Café, HOPE Spay and Neuter Clinic, Mentors & Meals, Woodford Theater, Life Adventure Center and Friends of Huntertown Park. Last summer, WCCF was a headline sponsor of the Midway Juneteenth Freedom Festival and is a Legacy Partner in the Versailles Downtown Revitalization Project.    

Cole Grannis, director of the new YEP program, said the grant will help to expand the program.   

“We are trying to get local youth engaged in the hours after school and trying to offer more opportunities for engagement,” he said. “Group programming ranges from individual student support to entire family programs.”   

Though Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary has been here for decades, Amy Sohner, with Greensource, said the management has changed and that the grant will help to expand programming.  

“We took over management in July of this year, and our mission is childhood education and environmental teaching; for the past 24 years we were based primarily in classrooms,” she said. “This grant will help us prepare the facility and grounds for field trips starting in the spring and summer camps in 2025. We have already had family winter events with hiking, and we are excited to continue developing new community programming.”   

The Community Fund is a locally controlled component of the Blue Grass Community Foundation. Since it was established in 2014, members of the board of advisors have worked within the community to identify and address areas of need. It also explores ways to improve life for all Woodford Countians.    

The foundation notes that none of the support provided would be possible without the generosity of local donors. If you are interested in helping the Community Fund’s work, please consider a year-end gift. To contribute, or learn more about the WCCF, visit bcgf.org and find Woodford County under the “Community Funds” tab. 

 *Story originally posted by The Woodford Sun, December 18, 2024