Posted on August 11, 2010

Newest Community Foundation Grants Total $213,150

This week, Grand Rapids Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees voted to approve $213,150 in new grants.  The grants address two main areas of need in Kent County including economic growth and health.

Grants to Encourage Healthy People

  • $100,000 to Michigan Migrant Legal Assistance Project for a program to assist migrant victims of domestic abuse.  In partnership with Legal Aid of Western Michigan, Michigan Migrant Legal Assistance Project is starting a new program to increase outreach to the migrant worker population, targeting women who may be victims of domestic violence.  Women in this situation are typically frightened to seek help due to immigration, custody and residency challenges.

If you are passionate about promoting personal safety, healthy behaviors and quality access to healthcare for all, please consider making a gift to the Community Foundation's Fund for Healthy People. 

Grants to Build Economic Prosperity

  • $25,000 to Literacy Center of West Michigan for its Blueprint for Literacy program.  With this grant, the Literacy Center aims to increase the number of students it serves, offer a technology based curriculum, provide more community literacy workshops and classes, and provide leadership to the literacy agenda of the community.
  • $30,000 to The SOURCE for the Health Field Collaborative.  The SOURCE has implemented a successful model for workforce retention and training with local manufacturers.  This grant will bring The SOURCE’s proven model to the health care field. For 18-months, The SOURCE will work with the Health Field Collaborative, made up of seven Grand Rapids health care providers, to develop more robust programming around retention, career coaching, training, and the development of the pipeline for new employees. This will strengthen the programming of both organizations and create economies of scale by having the two entities work together.
  • $58,150 to Women’s Resource Center for its Fresh Start Program. A federal funding cut left the Women’s Resource Center looking for other funding sources for its Fresh Start Program.  The program seeks to improve women’s economic self sufficiency, self-esteem and ability to advocate for themselves and their children to access community resources.  Program participants include displaced homemakers, women reentering the community following incarceration, unemployed women with barriers to employment and women living in poverty, including those who are part of the working poor.   

If you like these grants and would like to support our work in this area, please consider making a gift to the Community Foundation's Fund for Economic Prosperity.

Contacts for Media Interviews:

To learn more about a grant please contact one of the following spokespeople:

Grand Rapids Community Foundation—Marcia Rapp, vice president of programs, 616.454.1751

Literacy Center of West Michigan—Linda Krombeen, 616.459.5151 x19

Michigan Migrant Legal Assistance Project—Teresa Hendricks, 616.454.5055

The SOURCE—Andrew Brower, 616.452.5295

Women’s Resource Center—Sharon Caldwell-Newton, 616.458.5443 x113

Roberta King is also available to assist with scheduling media interviews.  She can be reached at 616.454.1751 x119.

Donors Make It Happen

The Community Foundation honors the people and funds that made these grants possible:

  • Ladies Literary Club Fund for Literary Arts
  • Duncan Littlefair Literary Fund for Children
  • Kent Charitable Fund
  • Orianna D. Hooker Fund
  • Mary A. and Lenore G. Smith Fund
  • Orville and Jean Bulman Estate
  • Glen C. Mason Fund
  • Jeanette Shelly Warner Fund
  • Robert J. Kulms Trust
  • Marian A. Aldrich Fund
  • Employees of Autocam Fund
  • Edward H. Blickley Fund
  • George M. Ames Fund
  • Jane and Sam Kravitz Fund for Community Good
  • William J. Chaille Fund
  • Margery Seeger Fund