On the heels of achieving a funding goal surpassing the $2 million target, Hillsboro Community Foundation board members presented grant checks totaling $20,483 to 13 organizations and programs serving Marion County children, families and seniors.
The presentations were made Feb. 17 during halftime of the Hillsboro High School boys’ basketball game with Hesston.
Of the total, $11,933 came through the Hillsboro Area Impact Fund and was distributed among eight recipient groups; $6,200 came through the Kansas Health Foundation Fund or the Kansas Health Fund and was award among five groups.
Since the formation of HCF in 2004, $431,904 has been given back to the community through grants and scholarships.
Following are the recipients of this year’s grants, with an explanation how the money will be used. Funding is provided through the Impact Fund unless otherwise indicated.
Grant recipients
• Circles of Marion County: $2,000. Circles is an initiative to eradicate poverty by building relationships across class lines. Circles defines persons caught in poverty as “Leaders,” and trains them to lead their families out of poverty. Funds will be used for transportation, producing and printing materials. Grant funds will be part of the general operating budget of the organization.
• City of Hillsboro: Bluejay Lanes: $1,000. Bluejay Lanes was acquired several years ago and has undergone extensive remodeling. Two rooms are dedicated for youth activities. The grant, which includes $300 from KHFF, will be used to replace an old and inefficient heating system.
• Hillsboro Senior Center: $2,500. The center serves meals five days a week and averages 80 meals per day. The center also is used for multiple community meals. The grant will go toward the purchase of a commercial dishwasher, which will enable the center to use fewer volunteers to wash dishes and continue to provide community meals.
• Main Street Ministries: $2,500. The Main Street Ministries food bank serves those struggling to feed their families in the community and surrounding area. The KHFF funds will be used to help fill the shelves of the food bank.
• Marion County 4-H Development Fund: $500. The fund supports and assists Marion County 4-H members, youth leaders and adult leaders in the areas of education, citizenship and leadership development. The grant will be used in the form of scholarships to help 4-H youth attend 4-H camp at Rock Springs Ranch.
• Parkside Homes: $2,417. The funds will go toward the program “Cooking and Learning in Grandma’s Kitchen,” an intergenerational program of cooking and cultural experiences between Parkside residents and Hillsboro community youth. Parkside will purchase a residential range for the main kitchenette and additional equipment to provide tools needed for this project.
• Prairie View Inc.: $1,000. Prairie View’s Summer Intensive Rehabilitation Program creates psychoeducational opportunities for children to build skills to live well within their homes and communities. Assistance to cover healthy lunches is of great help to SIRP and the children who benefit from the program. The KHF funds will be used to pay Trinity Church for healthy lunches for the participating children.
• Trinity Mennonite Church: $2,000. The summer “Food for Kids” program provides a noon meal throughout the summer for children who are at risk of hunger and food instability. About 200 children participate in the program. Each participant also receives a day swimming pass. The KHFF funding will be used to purchase food.
• Salem Home: $700. Due to reimbursements cuts, Salem Home is experiencing financial difficulties in buying recliners for all the rooms. Most residents move to the home with no furniture. Because of compromised health, some residents need to sit on recliners so they can be comfortable and able to get up when they need to. The KHF grant will enable Salem to purchase one recliner chair for a resident.
• USD 410 – After School Program: $2,000. This program is available for first through sixth graders. It provides healthy, enriching and emotionally developing activities for at-risk students who may be without adult supervision.
• USD 410 – Hearing support services: $1,350. Funds from the Marga Ebel Fund received will be used to cover the cost of a portable audiometer and the annual cost for calibration fees that are required. This equipment will help address a critical need within the school system to evaluate needs for students with hearing difficulties.
• USD 410 – Chess Guild: $500. The Chess Guild provides students with chess lessons, encourages them to grow in their knowledge and skill in chess, and provides for them to compete in scholastic chess tournaments. The funds will be used to send students to chess camp in Lindsborg to learn from a grandmaster.
• USD 410 – Vocal Music Department: $2,106. Students in this department perform for the community throughout the school year and participate in league, regional and state competitions. The funds, which include $1,000 from the Hillsboro Area Community Arts Endowment Fund, will be used to purchase a video camera and tripod to be used in the classroom as well as to video performances for the vocal music and band departments.
Reprinted from the Hillsboro Free Press