Community Foundation Disburses $295,000 YTD

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley has disbursed $295,670 in grants and distributions during the first six months of 2106, its president, Shari Harrell, announced Wednesday.

The funds consist in part of $156,003 in grants to 26 nonprofit organizations in Mahoning and Trumbull counties that submitted requests. The remaining $139,670 was distributed to 28 nonprofit organizations by fund advisers to organizations and the causes they support.

The largest grant is $42,500 to Beatitude House for its House of Blessing Youngstown, a transitional housing program for homeless women with children. The program has 12 fully furnished apartments for women and their children so they have a place to live while they work to gain stability and obtain permanent housing.

The Kennedy Family Fund, John S. and Doris M. Andrews Memorial Fund and the First Place Community Fund provided the grant.

A grant of $15,378 went to The English Center, an organization that helps people born abroad to adjust to life in the United States by becoming proficient in the English language. The program focuses on the reading, writing, listening and speaking skills needed to achieve job readiness or continue on to higher education. The International Institute Funds underwrote the grant.

A grant of $7,125 was awarded to the YWCA of Warren for its Steam (science, technology, engineering, arts, math) camp for middle-school girls. This year’s camp features a new partnership with the Oh Wow! Gloria & Roger Jones Children’s Center for Science & Technology and its “Engineering for Space” program. Field trips to nearby employers will be incorporated as well as a visit to the YSU Planetarium and a live chat with experts at NASA.

Other grants awarded from one or a combination of funds the Community Foundation manages:

• $15,000 to Compass Family & Community Services for Marian Commons, a proposed permanent supportive housing program for homeless individuals with a mental illness and/or addiction. (Kennedy Family Fund and John S. and Doris M. Andrews Memorial Fund.)

• $7,000 to Leadership Mahoning Valley to support Youth Leadership Mahoning Valley. (Kennedy Family Fund & First Place Community Fund.)

• $5,000 to Junior Achievement of Mahoning Valley to support programs that focus on work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy for youth. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to the Salvation Army to support its drop-in center, which serves low-income individuals in Warren who struggle with mental health issues. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley for its programs this year. Funding help some 60 agency programs and United Way-led initiatives. (First Place Community Fund.)

• $5,000 to Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries to support its employment services program that aids individuals with disabilities and/or other barriers so they can be hired and keep their jobs. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber for the U.S. Route 422 Redevelopment project manager position and for community welcome/neighborhood signage. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County to expand its youth summer program, Summer Discover/Reading. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to Invent Now Inc. to support Camp Invention, a program that provides elementary school children with a unique STEM enrichment program in a summer camp. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to Children’s Hunger Alliance to maintain and expand its after-school nutrition program in Youngstown. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $5,000 to Tabernacle Baptist Church for its Children’s Defense Fund Freedom School, a six-week program to minimize summer learning loss among youth. (Kennedy Family Fund.

• $3,000 to the Potential Development Program to buy a social/emotional curriculum to help students who have behavioral problems. (Young Philanthropist Fund.)

• $3,000 to Bascom Elementary, LaBrae Local Schools for “Bouncing Into Bascom,” a prekindergarten summer intervention program for students who score low on their kindergarten readiness assessments, have difficulty separating from family to attend school, or have poor social interaction skills. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $3,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown to support “Triple Play,” its comprehensive health and wellness initiative (First Place Community Fund) and support educational furnishings in its teen room. (Young Philanthropist Fund.)

• $2,500 to Henry H. Stambaugh Auditorium Association to conduct an engineering study for the Fifth Avenue stairs project. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $2,500 to The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges to support its scholarship program for students enrolled at its privately funded member institutions. (First Place Community Fund.)

• $2,000 to the Warren G. Harding High School Robotics Team, which encourages students to learn technology and engineering. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $2,000 to Beatitude House for its English Language Learners Program that provides ESL (English as a second language) classes for the women, tutoring for their children and outreach services and enrichment activities for families. (International Institute.)

• $2,000 to the YWCA of Youngstown for an International Women’s Day program where women can enjoy an evening of understanding and befriending one another. (International Institute.)

• $2,000 to Youngstown State University Summer Festival of the Arts “Festival of Nations.” a venue where ethnic groups showcase their traditions through food, dance and customs. (International Institute.)

• $1,000 to Ballet Western Reserve in support of its scholarship program for students. (Kennedy Family Fund.)

• $500 Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber to support the Jobs Now Mahoning Valley Workforce Development Program. (First Place Community Fund.)

• $500 to the Mahoning Valley Historical Society to update its hardware and software. (First Place Community Fund.)

The beneficiaries of the $139,670 in distributions:

• Action Inc.
• A Way with Words Foundation Inc.
• Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley
• Angels for Animals Inc.
• Beatitude House.
• Boardman Local Schools.
• Boardman Rotary Association.
• Butler Institute of American Art.
• Campbell Memorial High School Alumni Association.
• Champion Schools.
• City of Columbiana.
• Diocese of Youngstown.
• Garden Club of Youngstown.
• Grace Church
• Junior League of Youngstown Inc.
• Mahoning County Bar Association Foundation.
• Making Kids Count.
• Men’s Garden Club of Youngstown.
• Neil Kennedy Recovery Clinic.
• Poland Seminary High School.
• Poland Village Gardeners.
• Rotary Club of Youngstown
• St. Edward Church
• Trumbull County Coaches A
• United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley.
• Youngstown Cityscape Inc.
• Youngstown Foundation
• Youngstown State University Foundation

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