Community Foundation awards over $850,000 in grants in 2022

February 10, 2023

McPhail Field in Scottville

Community Foundation awards over $850,000 in grants in 2022

LUDINGTON — The Community Foundation for Mason County awarded $880,021 in grants in 2022, which included $145,494 through the foundation’s competitive grant process and $734,527 from donor-advised, scholarship, community project and organization endowments. 

“Looking back, we can see how donations through the Foundation have made an impressive impact on Mason County,” said Patti Klevorn, foundation board chair. “Looking ahead, we are ready to play our role in strengthening partnerships to serve this community.”

Grants out of Community Foundation funds provided support to a wide variety of nonprofit programs, capacity building, scholarships, and community projects including Rides to Wellness, a housing needs assessment, Ludington Area Center for the Arts after-school youth programming, Ludington Youth Sailing School, building an inclusive classroom library, West Shore Educational Service District’s Math & Mentors program, Big Sable Point Lighthouse generator, Scottville McPhail Field ball field improvements, Caritas Food Pantry in Custer, and Ludington State Park accessibility, among others. 

A full list of 2022 grant awards can be viewed here.
“The Community Foundation’s vision was reaffirmed in 2021 when we began a strategic planning process to guide where we could make the largest impact with our investments of grant dollars, community engagement, and advocacy,” said Andrea Large, executive director. “The process involved surveying our stakeholders, community leaders, nonprofit organizations, donors, trustees, youth advisory council, volunteers, and staff to determine the areas of focus.”

The planning process resulted in three strategic goals:

  • Advance educational attainment
  • Improve workforce supports
  • Increase recreation and quality of life opportunities

The strategic grant making priorities can be viewed here.

The deadline for 2023 spring grant applications is Thursday, February 23.

The Community Foundation for Mason County hosted a Grant seekers workshop on January 10 that aimed to support area nonprofit organizations as representatives learn how to be strategic in writing strong grant applications using Submittable. The Community Foundation will continue to provide learning opportunities in the future. Grant awards from its Spring 2023 grant round will be announced in the coming weeks.
“We are so grateful for our fundholders, donors, and community partners,” said Large. ”We look forward to our continued work together to create a more vibrant community with opportunities for all.”

Have a question or need support in completing a grant application? Contact Andrea Large, executive director, at alarge@cffmc.org or 231.845.0326.

Please consider helping to fund local news. Mason County Press and Oceana County Press are available for free thanks to the generous support of our advertisers and individuals. Three ways to help us: Venmo: @MasonCountyPress; Paypal: MasonCountyPress@gmail.com; Mail a check to PO BOX 21, Scottville, MI 49454. 

fb.com/stars

This story is copyrighted © 2023, all rights reserved by Media Group 31, LLC, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. No portion of this story or images may be reproduced in any way, including print or broadcast, without expressed written consent.

As the services of Media Group 31, LLC are news services, the information posted within the sites are archivable for public record and historical posterity. For this reason it is the policy and practice of this company to not delete postings. It is the editor’s discretion to update or edit a story when/if new information becomes available. This may be done by editing the posted story or posting a new “follow-up” story. Media Group 31, LLC or any of its agents have the right to make any changes to this policy. Refer to Use Policy for more information.