MCCF Awards $98,300 in Grants

The Grants Committee of the Marshall County Community Foundation awarded the first round of 2014 grants from the General Endowment Fund and the Ralph C. Vonnegut Jr. Grants during a news conference held Wednesday, April 9, 2014 in Plymouth, Indiana.

The General Endowment Fund is a grant making fund of the Marshall County Community Foundation (MCCF) that is one of the most flexible and responsive of the Foundation's 316 funds. Grants from this endowment fund address needs throughout Marshall County typically focusing on the arts, education, health and human services, recreation and the environment. The Ralph C. Vonnegut Jr. Fund was established to provide funding for environmental, educational or recreational projects directly related to Lake Maxinkuckee. For both types of grants, members of the community evaluate proposals and conduct site visits during a competitive application process.

 General Endowment Fund Grants:

Twice each year the Marshall County Community Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations in Marshall County for new, innovative, and collaborative projects. The General Endowment Fund of the Marshall County Community Foundation now exceeds $4 million dollars, enabling the Foundation to award more than $160,000 in grants from this fund on an annual basis.

During the Spring 2014 grant round, $85,300 was awarded to twenty one organizations in Marshall County for the following projects:

• American Red Cross serving Marshall County: $3,000 for Project SAFE, Marshall County fire prevention program
• Boys and Girls Club of Bremen: $5,000 for startup costs for summer program
• Boys and Girls Club of Marshall County, Inc: $15,000 to conduct a feasibility study for building project
• Bread of Life Community Food Pantry, Inc: $1,425 to purchase a commercial freezer
• Bremen Little League Baseball, Inc: $400 to purchase catchers equipment and batting helmets
• Culver Youth Soccer: $800 to purchase soccer goal nets, corner flags, and practice vests
• Earthworks, Inc: $1,000 to support Seed to Salad Project; all-school garden at Washington Discovery School
• Encore Performing Arts: $5,000 for ArtSparks, Missoula Children's Theatre, and Evening of Song-Original Works from Children of Farmers
• The Heartland Artists, Inc: $1,000 to support a variety of art classes for those new to the arts
• Heminger House: $2,075 for office upgrades to increase client confidentiality and improve administrative efficiency
• Historic Bremen: $1,500 for publication of walking tour guide highlighting historic buildings in Bremen
• Indiana Lincoln Highway Association, Inc: $500 to support Lincoln Corridor Plan across Northern Indiana to enhance education, preservation, beautification, signage, and tourism opportunities(match for federal grant)
• Izaak Walton League of America Argos, IN Chapter: $4,500 for new clubhouse water well
• Marshall-Starke Development Center, Inc: $5,000 for greenhouse construction to grow and sell produce year round
• Pathfinder Services, Inc: $800 to purchase washer and dryer for a home in Transitional Housing Program
• Plymouth Community Schools: $5,000 project based learning through New Tech Network at the Weidner School of Inquiry (Year 3 of 5)
• Project Lead The Way: $10,000 to provide high concentration of PLTW's STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) curriculum in public and private schools in 5-county region ($30,000 over 3 years as part of county match with United Way of Marshall County Inc as fiscal agent)
• Triton School Corporation: $300 for team building event to encourage Collaboration, Community, Commitment and Leadership by creating family groups among students of all grade levels
• Veterans Therapeutic Art Center, Inc: $20,000 to fund a multi-media program for veterans to learn how to publish short productions
• Wesley United Methodist Church: $1,000 to provide startup costs for new playgroup and family night programs in response to community survey
• Wythougan Valley Preservation Council, Inc: $2,000 for preparation of Bremen National Register nomination as next stage in completing nominations for all Marshall County communities by State of Indiana's 2016 Bicentennial celebration (match from Indiana Landmarks grant)

Ralph C. Vonnegut Jr. Grants:

The Ralph C. Vonnegut Jr. Fund was established to provide funding for environmental, educational, or recreational projects directly related to Lake Maxinkuckee. This year $13,000 was awarded to the following organizations in the Culver/Lake Maxinkuckee area:

• Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund, Inc: $10,000 for second year of Sediment Core Sampling
• Lake Maxinkuckee Association, Inc: $3,000 for purchase of two police radios for two safety boats