Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation Approves Over $1.5 Million in Grants

Published: December 29, 2015 | By: Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation | Category:

The Board of Directors of the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation recently approved $1.5 million in grants to 162 nonprofit organizations. The awards include competitive grants from the Community Foundation’s Funds for the Community, as well as distributions from donor-advised, designated, scholarship and agency funds.

The Community Foundation brings together private philanthropy with impactful nonprofits to support a healthy and vibrant Linn County.

The Community Foundation’s Funds for the Community include gifts from donors who have entrusted the Community Foundation to make grants that address the ever-changing community needs and opportunities. The funds support efforts related to innovation, maintaining success and building capacity through a competitive grantmaking process.

During this grant cycle, the Community Foundation received nearly $1 million in requests for competitive grants from the Funds for the Community. The Community Foundation, coupled with co-funding from a donor and an outside funder, funded $576,662 (or 58%) of the requested amount.

A complete list of the nonprofit organizations who received competitive grant awards from the Funds for the Community and the Competitive Donor-Advised Funds are included below. More information about these awards, including the project, purpose and amount of funding, can be found at https://www.gcrcf.org/grants/recent-grant-awards/2015-grant-awards/.

The Funds for the Community grant recipients include:

Program Fund
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids & East Central Iowa
Catherine McAuley Center Inc.
Cedar Rapids Animeals
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art
College Community School District
Families Helping Families of Iowa
First Presbyterian Church of Cedar Rapids
Iowa Valley Resource Conservation & Development
LBA Foundation
Linn County – Juvenile Detention and Diversion Services
Matthew 25
National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
Orchestra Iowa
Revival Theatre Company
SPT Theatre Company
Tanager Place
The Homestead
Theatre Cedar Rapids
Trees Forever

Organizational Development Fund:
Aging Services
Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre
Cedar Valley Humane Society
Four Oaks Family & Children’s Services
Matthew 25
National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library

Linn County Fund:
Alburnett Community School District
Area Substance Abuse Council
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids & East Central Iowa, Inc.
Cedar Valley Friends of the Family
Cedar Valley Habitat for Humanity
City of Central City
City of Walker
Coggon Area Betterment Association
Families Helping Families of Iowa
Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa
Kids First Law Center
Old Creamery Theatre Company
Old Opera House Community Arts Council
One Iowa Education Fund
Red Cedar Chamber Music
Riverview Center

President’s Fund:
Coggon Historical Society
Deaf Iowans Against Abuse

Resilience-Building Fund:
This fall, the Community Foundation awarded grants to help improve the resiliency of organizations that would provide key services to vulnerable populations following natural disasters. These grants were made available in part through funding from the Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities. Recipients include:
Abbe Health
Aging Services
Area Substance Abuse Council
Foundation 2
Four Oaks Family & Children’s Services
Iowa Legal Aid
Matthew 25
Tanager Place

The Competitive Donor-Advised Funds grant recipients include:

Gazette Foundation Donor-Advised Fund:
Cedar Valley Habitat for Humanity
Eastern Iowa Arts Academy
Families Helping Families of Iowa
Junior League of Cedar Rapids
Marion Chamber Foundation
Riverview Center
Trees Forever

GreatAmerica Financial Services Corporation Donor-Advised Fund:
African American Museum of Iowa
American Cancer Society – Cedar Rapids
American Heart Association
Brucemore
Catherine McAuley Center
Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art
Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre
Czech Village/New Bohemia Urban Main Street District
Gems of Hope
H D Youth Center
March of Dimes Foundation
Meth-Wick Community
National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
Old Creamery Theatre Company
Orchestra Iowa
Tanager Place
Theatre Cedar Rapids
Waypoint Services for Women, Children and Families

Lil’ Drug Store Products Donor-Advised Fund:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids & East Central Iowa
Kids First Law Center
National Council on Youth Leadership

McGrath Automotive Group Donor-Advised Fund:
Cedar Valley Habitat for Humanity
Mercy Medical Center Foundation
Riverview Center
Theatre Cedar Rapids

World Class Industries Donor-Advised Fund:
Cedar Rapids Community School District
Cedar Valley Friends of the Family
Families Helping Families of Iowa
Iowa College Foundation
Riverview Center
Tanager Place
Waypoint Services for Women, Children and Families
Young Parents Network

The next grant deadline at the Community Foundation is on Friday, February 12, 2016 at 4:30 p.m. For more details about funding opportunities, visit www.gcrcf.org.

Visit the Nonprofit Giving Center and the Nonprofit Calendar to search for a nonprofit fund, organization, cause, or event to support.
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