VERO BEACH — The Indian River Community Foundation recently awarded $85,000 to four local nonprofit organizations through a competitive grant process for programs that address root causes of time-sensitive community issues.
Funding for the grant program comes from eight local philanthropists who either hold donor advised funds with the Indian River Community Foundation or who support charitable giving through the organization.
Through the unrestricted fund, these individuals rely on the Community Foundation’s volunteers and staff to conduct a rigorous review process and determine the most effective use of their charitable dollars, said Kerry Bartlett, Executive Director.
“Our volunteers looked for well-tested models that could be brought to scale or expanded in our community, as well pilot programs that could be grown and replicated,” Bartlett said. “We paid particular attention to organizations that showed collaboration, knowledge of their sector, a clearly identified target population and benchmarks for success.”
The community foundation awarded $15,000 to CASTLE to bring Strengthening Families, a nationally recognized parenting program, to Indian River County; $20,000 to Senior Resource Association for a Medication Management Intervention Program to help prevent medication-related falls, prescription drug abuse and nursing home place among the elderly population; $25,000 to The Learning Alliance to implement a nationally-recognized, evidenced-based reading curriculum in one grade level at a local Title 1 school; and $25,000 to the Treasure
Coast Homeless Services Council to support a Housing Partnership that is rehabilitating foreclosed, vacant properties and turning them into affordable housing for the homeless or near-homeless disabled residents and lower middle class families.
This is the third year fund holders and supporters of the Indian River Community Foundation have made this competitive grant process possible.
The idea for the process came from John and Kathi Schumann who wanted to use their charitable dollars to make an immediate impact on the lives of people struggling in Indian River County.
“When Kathi and I had a family foundation, conducting a diligent grant making process became a considerable burden and we were never sure of the outcomes of our philanthropic investments,” Mr. Schumann said.
“Three years ago we decided to make unrestricted gifts to the Community Foundation and rely on their expertise to find our community’s pressing needs and the nonprofits working to solve the issues. We have been very impressed with the comprehensive outcome reports provided to us at the end of each funding cycle.”
The Indian River Community Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides donors with flexible philanthropic tools to achieve their current and long-term charitable giving goals. The Foundation currently manages over $8 million in charitable assets, the majority of which are held in donor advised funds.
For more information about the Indian River Community Foundation, contact Bartlett at kerry@ircommunityfoundation.com or (772) 492-1407.