Community Foundation of NCW Awards $402,000 in Grants to NCW Nonprofits

The Community Foundation of NCW has awarded $402,000 in Regional Impact Grants (RIG) to nonprofits addressing community needs and enhancing the quality of life in Chelan, Douglas, and Okanogan counties.

The RIG provided core operating and project-specific support on a quarterly basis (from July 2021 to June 2022) for nonprofits through two funding levels ($4,000 or $10,000) depending on the size of the organization and the scope of their project or request. There were 55 grants awarded to organizations improving NCW communities through vital health and human services, affordable housing, environmental stewardship, youth and elder support, and enriching arts and cultural experiences.

Throughout the year, the Foundation received more grant requests than funding available – but, through the Partners in Giving fund, $40,000 in additional grants were able to be awarded.

“Our Partners in Giving provide unrestricted gifts to the Foundation that allow the Board of Trustees additional resources to support grants, scholarships or leverage time-sensitive opportunities” said Beth Stipe, the Foundation’s executive director. “Those flexible dollars allow us to make a greater impact in our region, and we are incredibly grateful for those donors that entrust us to make good use of their generous gifts.”

This year, the RIG is returning to an annual cycle opening August 1 and due September 15th. While the application process remains unchanged, the maximum funding request will be based on an organization’s budget size in effort to award a balanced number of grants with the funding available.

“We’re continually working to improve our grantmaking program to make the greatest impact in the region with limited resources.” said Claire Oatey, Director of Community Grants. “For 2022, we will return to an annual grant program but with some new parameters to help ensure a more equitable distribution of the dollars we have available.”

For more information about the RIG and apply, visit https://cfncw.org/regionalimpactgrant/.

2021 Regional Impact Grant Awards

Chelan County Mountain Rescue Association: Volunteer organization of experienced climbers dedicated to saving lives through search, rescue, emergency medical care, and mountain safety education in Chelan County and surrounding areas. ($4,000)

Chelan Valley Community Nurse: A nurse and bilingual/bicultural Community Health Worker to make free nursing visits to vulnerable adults living at home. The focus is on safety, continuity of care, and prevention of adverse health incidents. ($4,000)

Lake Chelan Arts Council: Supporting the visual and performing arts in the Chelan Valley through art classes and exhibits, Picture This 3rd Grade Art, Legacy Portraits at Heritage Heights, and the annual Lake Chelan Arts Festival. ($4000)

Mountain Sprouts Children's Community: Early childhood education for children ages 18 months - 7 years old, in an outdoor preschool setting in two locations in Leavenworth. ($4,000)

Small Miracles: Partnering with school districts & USDA Summer Lunch Program to serve meals for children in Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, Rock Island, Monitor and Cashmere each summer. ($4,000)

Sustainable NCW: Promoting a culture of environmental stewardship and social sustainability in NCW through education, presentations, Waste Wizard recycling tool, and Earth Day Fair. ($4,000)

Team Naturaleza: Engaging multicultural community in informal natural science education, Leave No Trace ethics, and healthier lifestyles through bilingual nature walks and field studies co-led by scientists and trusted Latino community members. ($4,000)

Upper Valley Connection: Enriching the lives of the special needs community through

theater camp, arts programming, choir, sports, and other social programs. ($4,000)

Chelan Douglas Child Services Association: Launching the “Imagination Library” in Chelan & Douglas counties which provides free, high quality, age-appropriate books to ANY child who signs up from birth up until age 5. Books are mailed to each child monthly at no cost to the family. ($10,000)

Indigenous Roots & Reparation Foundation: Newly formed Indigenous-led nonprofit focused on programs to preserve indigenous culture, empower native people, and raise awareness through education, and a long- term goal of Land Back for cultural center in NCW. ($4,000)

Greater Leavenworth Museum: Promoting and preserving the heritage and history of the Upper Wenatchee Valley. Working to expand the P’Squosa (Wenatchi) First Peoples Exhibit, Spanish translations of all exhibits, collecting oral histories of elders, and outreach for new downtown location including walking history tours. ($10,000)

Planned Parenthood of Greater WA and North Idaho: Mobile clinics for Latinx farmworkers near Wenatchee & Brewster: screening for diabetes, hypertension, and STI; first aid for burns, allergies, and skin conditions; and COVID boosters. Education on heat exhaustion & distribution of care bags. ($10,000)

SAGE: (Safety, Advocacy, Growth, Empowerment) Domestic Violence Services, Sexual Assault Services, Crime Victims Trauma and Assistance Services, and a Child Advocacy Center. This grant will support adding an additional Child Forensic Room (set of interview rooms with recording equipment) due to the steep uptick in Child Forensic Interviews. ($10,000)

TEAMS Learning Center: Full-time and part-time, drop-in, nonprofit child development center with adult instruction in the field of early childhood education. Locations in Wenatchee and

Cashmere. ($10,000)

Thrive Chelan Valley: Food2Schools provides weekend meals to food insecure students in the Chelan and Manson School Districts, as well as the Thrive Teen Center. Over 6,800 bags of food were served in 2021 and they project over 7,000 bags in 2022. ($10,000)

Upper Valley MEND: Community Harvest gleaning program provides fresh food to emergency food providers in Chelan & Douglas counties, beyond Upper Valley. ($10,000)

Waste Loop: Inspiring and transforming local waste streams into sustainable new resources in the greater Leavenworth area. Grant funds will support new Community Composting Program to divert organic waste out of the landfill. ($10,000)

Wenatchee River Institute: Year-round environmental education opportunities for youth and adults on the Wenatchee River Institute campus in Leavenworth and through the Traveling Naturalist program in low-income schools throughout NCW. ($10,000)

Wenatchee Valley Humane Society: Serves all animals and residents of Chelan and Douglas County through education, protection, and pet adoptions. ($10,000)

Women's Resource Center of NCW: The Bruce Transitional Housing Program provides 2 years of housing to homeless families with children. ($10,000)

The Community Foundation of North Central Washington’s mission is to grow, protect, and connect charitable gifts in support of strong communities throughout Chelan, Douglas, and Okanogan counties. Established in 1986, the Community Foundation manages $148 million in assets through 600+ individual funds and has awarded over $46 million in grants and scholarships.