Rotary Foundation Awards Over $63,500 In Grants

Over $63,500 in grants from the Lakewood-Rocky River Rotary Foundation will be used to provide scholarships, recognize student achievement, purchase dictionaries for third graders, and help fund worthy programs by community organizations.

The awards focused on three main areas – community health and wellness, food and nutrition, and programs that encourage and foster youth leadership.

The Rotary Club of Lakewood and Rocky River made the awards.

The club awarded $12,000 in scholarships to four high school seniors, and presented $6,000 to student winners in the club’s annual speech, music and art competition at the Beck Center on April 2.

The Beck Center received $2,500 for music scholarships, and $1,872 was used to continue the club’s commitment to provide a dictionary each year to every third grader in Lakewood and Rocky River.

Seed money grants went to Lakewood Alive ($3,000) for a tool box program to loan and rent tools and construction materials, and North Coast Health Ministry ($2,000) to fund its new child immunization program.

Help To Others (H2O) received a $1,342 seed money grant for its new Home Alone Training Program, and the Rocky River Parks and Recreation Foundation was awarded $1,000 for its campaign to replace the current pavilion at Rocky River Park.

American Youth Foundation scholarships totaling $3,850 were awarded to Lakewood and Rocky River high school to send students to leadership camp this summer.

Special Spaces received $2,500 for a bedroom makeover project for a terminally ill child. Trinity Lakewood Community Outreach received $2,500 for its food programs. Grants of $2,000 each were awarded to Cornucopia Inc. (Nature’s Bin) for vocational training; to Lakewood Community Services Center for its jobs program involving El Barrio Workforce Development; Girls with Sole to provide summer camp scholarships; Lakewood Charitable Assistance Corp. for its Thanksgiving and Christmas food distributions; and Rocky River Meals on Wheels for food and supplies.

Grants of $1,500 each went to Barton Center to help fund transportation for seniors, H2O for its student summer camp, Matthew’s Lending Library for equipment, North Coat Health Ministry for language translation services for patients with limited English skills, and Rocky River Assistance Center for its food distribution program.

Bridge Avenue School received $1,250 to purchase computer equipment for students, and Lakewood Foundation $1,200 for its Thanksgiving meals program.

The Singing Angels Foundation received $1,000 to fund performances at Lakewood and Rocky River senior and assisted living centers, and Youth Challenge, $1,000, for its youth volunteer committee’s activities.

Grants were also awarded to Connecting For Kids ($800), Rocky River Senior Center ($750), HUGS Foundation ($500), Lakewood YMCA ($500) and River Sprouts Inc. ($500).

The Foundation’s assets grow each year as the result of gifts, donations and bequests by members and friends of the club. Each fall, community organizations are encouraged to submit grant requests to the Rotary club’s Grants Committee for its consideration.

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Volume 15, Issue 8, Posted 12:14 PM, 04.17.2019