Submitted by San Juan Community Foundation
The San Juan Island Community Foundation recently awarded grants totaling $20,546 to local nonprofits in their third and final grant cycle of the year.
The foundation awarded $4,648 from its Healthy Community Fund, while generous donors and the SJICF Women’s Fund contributed a combined $15,898.
The following local projects were funded:
The San Juan County Economic Development Council was awarded $2,348 to launch its Construction Basics Training program on San Juan Island.
Island Stage Left was awarded $3,150 to replace the flooring of its stage.
Islands Oil Spill Association was awarded $3,590 to purchase safety equipment and boom trailers.
PADs for Parkinson’s was awarded $4,858 to cover costs for its annual community newsletter.
The San Juan Island Family Resource Center was awarded $5,000 to support a technology upgrade for improved outreach.
Leadership San Juan Islands was awarded $1,600 for the class of 2019 tuition assistance.
To increase nonprofit collaboration and provide training, the foundation staff recently hosted the first of a series of networking sessions for nonprofit leaders. Held at the grange hall in Friday Harbor in November, nonprofit directors and development staff enjoyed an update from the SJICF staff and engaged in lively conversations over lunch to discuss current projects and to share ideas for specific topics like board development, fundraising and partnering with other nonprofits for events and programs.
“With our added staff, we’re excited to provide more resources to nonprofits in the coming year,” said Carrie Unpingco, executive director of SJICF. “In addition to grant funding, we hope these opportunities to meet regularly with peers will help strengthen nonprofit leaders and make their work a bit easier. Sometimes just talking to others that share your day-to-day challenges can make a big difference.”
Future sessions are planned for 2019, with the next one on Feb. 28.
The foundation’s next grant cycle is coming up right after year-end. If you work at a nonprofit planning to submit a grant application, call the foundation at 360-378-1001 to schedule a pre-application meeting between Dec. 10 and Dec. 21. The deadline for submission is Jan. 7.
For more information, visit www.sjicf.org.
