Five Nonprofits Receive EGC Grants!

The club established and maintains the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Charitable Fund from which we award grants in two annual cycles — summer and winter — to qualified nonprofits that focus on one or more of Rotary's seven areas of focus. Online applications were received on Jan. 8, and allocation committee members met Jan. 18 to review the applications and determine the awards. In all, eight nonprofits submitted excellent applications requesting funds for specific projects and general programs.

 

Family Advocates received a $500 grant for its family strengthening education program, which is designed to ensure that parents have the tools and skills needed to keep their families safe and intact through education, application and demonstration. The family strengthening education program will offer 16 ten-week parenting courses in 2022, in addition to case management, one-on-one coaching and concrete resources to participants to strengthen families who are raising the most precious resource, children, in a safe, happy and healthy environment. This project will increase protective factors for pregnant and parenting teens.

 

In partnership with the Cardinal Academy, the family strengthening education program will work with pregnant and parenting teens to effectively build strengths at the individual, relationship and community levels that will help them face and overcome trauma or adversity. It can help these teens develop skills, personal characteristics, knowledge, relationships and opportunities that offset risk factors and contribute to improved well-being. All of these efforts will contribute to the health and well-being of not only the mother but also the child. Funds will be used to purchase supplies, materials and equipment for a year's worth of classes.

 

The $250 grant to the Agency for New Americans will provide funds for professional brochures that will increase awareness of the organization, as well as bring more awareness to refugee resettlement as a whole. This is a project intended to grow their donor base, as well as their volunteer base. Making the community better aware of their story and services and of the stories of their clients will help leverage the incredible potential and passion our local community has for supporting refugee resettlement.

 

Girls on the Run received a $1,000 grant to provide either full or partial need-based scholarships for approximately 12 girls to attend Girls on the Run at the Future Public School, a Title 1 school located in Garden City, during the spring 2022 season. Girls on the Run (GOTR) works to prevent adverse outcomes by empowering girls to know and activate their limitless potential. The program accomplishes this mission through an intentional and evidence-based curriculum that promotes social-emotional learning, critical life skills and healthy attitudes and behaviors among adolescent girls. An independent study conducted by Dr. Maureen Weiss, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, found that GOTR is more beneficial than organized sports and physical education programs in teaching life skills and in demonstrating that strategies for managing emotions, resolving conflict, helping others, and making intentional decisions are most powerful when they are explicitly taught.

 

The committee also granted $1,000 to the Idaho Veterans Chamber of Commerce for the purchase of a computer that can be used within their office when they meet with military job seekers and their families in the community. Their mission is to create wrap-around services and a navigation network hub for veterans, military serving, and their families to provide community resources for education, housing, entrepreneurship, workforce management, family and wellness services. The computer will enable them to create a veteran-friendly employer network hub for civilian employers, veterans, and family business owners and job seekers throughout Idaho. It will break down barriers in the talent pipeline and develop a better understanding of how to seek veterans and their families to fill the gaps and workforce shortage.

 

Purses With a Purpose Boise wants to have a significant, positive effect on women in crisis and in transition. They believe that a simple gesture of love accompanied by the gift of a nice quality purse filled with personal necessities can have this effect. They accept donations of gently used purses, cash and toiletry products from our generous community. They then gather volunteers once a month to stuff the donated purses with the toiletries. Their recipient organizations range from the prison release program to shelters assisting women and children in crisis and transition and to local schools assisting homeless teens. They currently perform their volunteer work in the executive director’s garage. They are hoping to acquire additional space in which to carry out their mission — for free. However, they need funds to equip the space for storage and work space. They were awarded $250 to equip their new space when it is found.

 

Those who submitted applications but did not receive grants in this cycle included CATCH, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Southwest Idaho District Council and the Learning Lab. We have supported these organizations through donations, service projects and grants in the past. As a club, we hope to continue helping these deserving organizations through individual donations and volunteerism.