Hutchinson Community Foundation awards more than $43K in grants

29 Nov Hutchinson Community Foundation awards more than $43K in grants

Hutchinson Community Foundation recently awarded $43,310 to seven nonprofit organizations in the latest round of its 2021 Fund for Reno County grant cycle.

Established in 1990, the Fund for Reno County, formerly known as the Fund for Hutchinson, serves as a permanent resource for the changing needs of Reno County. Grants represent an innovative approach or collaboration, a new efficiency, a critical need that requires funding or an opportunity that needs a bit of local support to leverage resources for the community.

Proposals for the grants are accepted year-round, with awards decided in March, May, July, September and November.

In addition, Hutch CF also continued payout throughout 2021 of several multi-year grants that were awarded in previous years. In all, $347,415 in competitive and strategic grants were supported from the Fund for Reno County this year.

The following organizations received grants in November.

Abundant Life Childcare & Preschool, $14,950: Funds will allow an already stable child care center in the community to add 48 spots, increasing the center’s capacity to serve preschool and toddler-aged children and allowing the center to serve school-aged children during school breaks.

Hutchinson Public Schools Child Care, $2,757: Grant funds will support the replacement of the USD 308 Child Care Center’s dishwasher, washer and dryer, which are all used much more frequently since the onset of COVID-19 to protect the health of the children attending the center and its staff members.

USD 310 Fairfield Child Care, $15,000: Funds will support the construction of an additional outdoor play area at USD 310 Fairfield’s child care center, which serves families from six rural Reno County communities. The new equipment will be appropriate for children 6 months to 2 years old, whose size and developmental needs prohibit them from safely using the existing equipment. Reno County families will have access to the playground even when school is not in session.

City of Hutchinson Human Relations Commission, $4,750: Funds will help with costs of a facilitated strategic planning session for the city’s Human Relations Commission as it works with the new full-time Human Relations Officer to re-establish priorities and set long-term strategic goals and plans.

Girls on the Run Heart of Kansas, $2,086: Girls on the Run uses running and other physical activities as a platform for teaching life skills and promoting positive social, emotional and holistic outcomes for girls in grades three through eight. Grant funding will support registration fees, making the experience more affordable for 20 girls in Reno County.

Hospice and HomeCare of Reno County, $2,117: Grant funds will be used to construct a sidewalk between Hospice House and the Hospice House gardens, creating an ADA-compliant pathway, facilitating patients’ and families’ safe access to this outdoor asset, which brings comfort to many.

Hutchinson Symphony Association, $2,650: Grant funds will help support Hutchinson Symphony’s Hometown Tour, an eclectic and dynamic musical experience featuring different musical genres and styles, guest artists, and performances in a variety of Hutchinson locations.

The following multi-year and strategic grants were supported in 2021.

American Rescue Plan Act Resident Engagement Meetings, $8,300: Funds supported the civic engagement process regarding allocation of federal dollars from the American Rescue Plan Act.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Hutchinson, Inc., $20,000: Second year of a two-year grant toward the club’s workforce development project, which includes hiring a full-time coordinator to bring high-yield workforce exploration and education opportunities to USD 308 K-12 students.

Buhler Public Library, $1,500: Second year of a two-year grant for Apollo Biblionix, a host platform that allows the library to be fully automated, increasing service to patrons and making the collection more available during the pandemic and beyond. This bridge funding will allow library staff and board time to secure funding for future years.

Capital Builders Program, $11,250: Hutchinson Community Foundation partnered with fundraising experts at Generous Change to offer an eight-month educational opportunity to assist select nonprofits in developing and executing a fundraising plan. Funding in 2021 was used as challenge grants to spur participants’ fundraising efforts.

Circles of Hope Reno County, $13,995: Third year of a three-year grant to create a part-time director position that will provide focus, structure and supervision for the program’s staff and volunteers and increase Circle’s capacity to recruit volunteers and develop and carry out fundraising efforts.

City of Hutchinson Human Relations Commission, $20,000: First year of a three-year grant to support the programming and educational efforts of the Human Relations Commission through trainings, research, facilitated meetings and support of partnerships and cultural celebrations that promote diversity, equity and inclusion.

LEADership Coaching for Reno County, $15,000: Part of a funding partnership with United Way of Reno County, the grant provided Kansas Leadership Center training to 26 nonprofit and for-profit organizations to increase the number of people in the community with adaptive leadership and coaching skills and to foster relationships, collaboration and a shared language among participants, creating a community of co-workers to achieve greater impact in Hutchinson and Reno County. 

New Beginnings Inc., $2,300: Second year of a two-year grant supporting the purchase of the Blackbaud Tapestry fundraising platform to aid in the development of a formal fundraising program. 

Reno County Entrepreneurship Ecosystem, $90,000: Year two of a five-year grant and funding partnership with the City of Hutchinson and Reno County to strengthen and grow the small-business sector through supporting the Entrepreneurship Navigator at StartUp Hutch, efforts to improve mentorship and connection among entrepreneurs, and increased communications that inspire and celebrate innovators.

 Reno County Historical Society, $15,200: Second year of a two-year grant funding Reno County Museum’s work, with the assistance of Wichita State University, to digitize the archival collection of Pat Mitchell. The images will be made available online at no additional cost to patrons.

 Resilience Reno County, $5,840: Third year of a three-year grant for an AmeriCorps Volunteers In Service to America (VISTA) position supporting the collaborative effort to equip community members and organizations with resources on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and building resilience.

Salthawk Community Support, $10,000: Second year of a two-year grant to Salthawk Community Support, a ministry program of Trinity United Methodist Church that receives volunteer and financial support from other churches and community members. The program aims to remove barriers to education for students at Hutchinson High School and Hutchinson Middle School 8 by providing mentoring, character development activities, financial education and basic needs supplies.