Winneshiek County Community Foundation Distributes Over $111,000 to Local Nonprofit Organizations

Winneshiek County Community Foundation

March 15, 2021

The Winneshiek County Community Foundation (WCCF) has granted $111,201.83 to 26 projects of organizations serving Winneshiek County through its 2021 grant cycle.

“The Winneshiek County Community Foundation Governing Committee extends our gratitude to the nonprofit organizations for sharing their work and projects through the 2021 round of grant applications,” said Marcia McKelvey, chair of the WCCF governing committee.

Grant recipient organization, project the grant will fund, and grant amount are listed below by funding areas.

Arts & Culture

• ArtHaus, Creating an Energy-Efficient and Accessible Entrance, $5,000
• Laura Ingalls Wilder Park & Museum, Burr Oak Mercantile Renovation, $4,000
• Porter House Museum, Back Porch Restoration, $4,900
• Winneshiek County Agricultural Association, Display Cases, $5,000

Community Betterment

• City of Calmar, City Park Swing Expansion Project, $1,521.67
• City of Calmar, Police Department - In-Car Video System, $3,300
• City of Protivin, Fire Department - Turnout Gear, $2,000
• City of Ridgeway, Ridgeway Community Park, $5,000
• Decorah Area Chamber of Commerce, Family Friendly Update for Winneshiek County Visitor Center Public Restrooms, $1,647.80
• Decorah Volunteer Fire Dept Association, Connecting More Resources, $6,175
• Fort Atkinson Firefighter's Association, 2021 Portable Radios & Pagers, $4,394.36
• Frankville Emergency Volunteer Association, Thermal Image Camera and Tires, $4,700
• Winneshiek County, Winneshiek County 911 Communications Center, $3,500

Education & Youth Development

• Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois, Girl Scout Leadership Experience in Winneshiek County, $1,000
• Helping Services for Youth & Families, Youth Mentoring at Helping Services, $3,708
• Northeast Iowa Montessori School, Elementary Expansion, $5,000
• Ossian De Sales Child Care Center, New Playground Equipment, $4,600
• Sunflower Child Development Center, Sunflower Child Development and Discovery Reimagined, $10,000

Environment & Animal Welfare

• Winneshiek County, Conservation Board - Kayak Launch at Lake Meyer, $2,500

Health

• Aase Haugen Senior Services, Comfort and Safety for Residents with Dementia, $5,000

Human Service

• Decorah Community Food Pantry, Improving Nutrition for Food Pantry Clients by Offering Local Produce, $4,955
• Greater Area Pantry, LED Lighting, $3,800
• Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging, Winneshiek County Home Delivered Meals Programs, $5,000
• Northeast Iowa Food Bank, Feeding Children of Winneshiek County, $5,000
• Riverview Center, Winneshiek County Sexual Assault Crisis Response Program, $4,500
• The Spectrum Network, Spectrum Kitchen Safety Upgrades, $5,000

A grant awards celebration event is tentatively scheduled for fall 2021.

Decisions on grant awards are determined by a local committee, which consists of volunteers from Winneshiek County. Committee members include: Dianne Ameling, Rich Gaard, Justin Gullekson, Gary Hildebrandt, Lilly Jensen, Steve Johnson, Mark Kuhn, Marcia McKelvey (chair), Emily Mineart, Keith Newhouse, Andy Nimrod, Jana Olson and Joe Skretta.

Grants are awarded through WCCF’s competitive grant process to projects in the program areas of: arts and culture, community betterment, education and youth development, environment and animal welfare, health and human service. Grant applicants must be a 501(c)(3) designated organization or government entity serving Winneshiek County in order to be considered for funding. The 2022 grant cycle opens November 15 with an application deadline of January 10, 2022. The grant guidelines and application can be found at www.winneshiekccf.org.