INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — At an April 7 meeting of the Indian River Community Foundation (IRCF), the organization’s Board of Directors presented grant awards to 11 nonprofit organizations totaling $300,000 from its Unrestricted Fund.
Six nonprofit organizations with annual operating budgets less than $500,000 each received a $5,000 Micro Grant to support program funding or capacity building projects. An additional five organizations received a total of $290,000 to support initiatives that align with Indian River County’s goal of having 90 percent of all third graders reading on grade level of 2018. The grants were made possible thanks to generous support from community philanthropists who entrust IRCF to assist them with their charitable giving, said Jeff Pickering, the organization’s recently appointed Chief Executive Officer.
“It was an honor to be part of the grant award process as one of my first official acts as CEO,” Pickering said. “Presenting these awards and learning about the incredible work of each nonprofit confirms the vibrancy and effectiveness of the philanthropic community in Indian River County.”
The literacy grants, also called Moonshot Moment Grants, are part of a two-year commitment the IRCF Board of Directors made to work hand-in-hand with civic leaders, nonprofit organizations and stakeholders to help ensure the entire community rallies around the importance of third grade reading.
Grants awarded to support the Moonshot Moment include:
Mentoring for Success in Early Childhood submitted by Big Brothers Big Sisters of St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee Counties. The program will use a $48,791 grant to assist four-year old children in becoming ready for kindergarten through one-to-one mentoring and family literacy activities at two child care centers in Vero Beach.
Summer Scholars submitted by Boys and Girls Clubs of Indian River County. A $5,270 challenge grant will use one-on-one literacy tutoring to help prevent summer learning loss for at-risk children who are members of the Boys and Girls Clubs.
Ready Set Grow! Summer Slide submitted by the Education Foundation of Indian River County. A collaborative grant of $44,000, will be combined with an additional grant from the John’s Island Community Service League to fund an extension of the 2014-15 school year for struggling four-year-old children enrolled in the School District of Indian River County’s Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program.
Moonshot Academy, submitted by The Learning Alliance. A $160,000 grant, the largest ever awarded from the Unrestricted Fund, will establish afterschool literacy and enrichment programs at five elementary campuses for struggling students in kindergarten through third grade. The Moonshot Academy serves a dual purpose of providing teachers the opportunity to learn and perfect literacy education skills while also providing “catch-up” time for struggling readers who are not performing on grade level.
Moonshot Masterpieces: Look Talk and Learn with Art, submitted by the Vero Beach Museum of Art. A $31,939 grant will train classroom teachers from all 13 elementary schools in using the arts as a tool for literacy. In addition, Moonshot Masterpieces, oversized reproductions of art from the Museum’s permanent collection, will be displayed at the elementary schools along with literacy activities designed to use the visual arts to increase oral language and literacy.
The six organizations that received $5,000 Micro Grants include:
Junior Guide Training, submitted by Florida Outdoor Center. This grant will provide teenagers from economically disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity to become Junior Guides and earn certification in SOLO Wilderness First Aid. The training and certification will allow the teens to become wilderness counselors, which can lead to summer jobs and a future career path.
Upcycle it! Submitted by Keep Indian River Beautiful. This grant will support the rebranding of the organization’s Reuse/Exchange Center located at the Indian River Mall to include repurposed items transformed into works of art. Ultimately, the grant will further an overarching goal to improve recycling efforts in Indian River County.
Tutor Training Director Support, submitted by Literacy Services of Indian River County. This grant partially funds a new fulltime Tutor Training Director that will support the organization’s 145 volunteer tutors in their goal of helping adults learn to read.
Kids at Work, submitted by The Buggy Bunch. With this grant, The Buggy Bunch will launch a pilot program to engage parents of infants and toddlers in learning how to build kindergarten readiness and pre-literacy skills through music, physical activity and art.
Reaching Veterans, Touching the Community, submitted by Veterans Council of Indian River County. This grant will support the Veterans Council’s new strategic marketing plan to increase awareness of available resources for local veterans.
IRCF funded the Moonshot Moment and Micro Grants through a competitive review process conducted by a volunteer grants committee. The organization will monitor the grants over a period of one year and provide periodic reports back to the donors who contributed to the Unrestricted Fund, Pickering said.
IRCF was founded in 2005 and began formally operating in 2008 with a mission to build a stronger community through donor driven philanthropy. The foundation currently holds more than $30 million in assets restricted for charitable purposes, the majority of which are in donor advised funds. For more information visit www.ircommunityfoundation.com or contact Pickering at (772) 492-1407.
