ALPENA—The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan (CFNEM) recently awarded a new round of Community Impact grants and Northeast Michigan Women’s Giving Circle (WGC) grants covering a four-county area that includes Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency, and Presque Isle Counties. The Board of Trustees recently approved 65 new grants totaling $125,361.

$88,133 awarded in new Community Impact grants are:

1. Alcona County Commission on Aging - awarded $2,000 for the Kickstart Alcona project;
2. The Alcona Music Project, Inc. - awarded $750 for the WXTF FM-LP Radio Station Relocation/Renovation project;
3. Alpena Childcare & Development Center - awarded $500 to purchase playground toys;
4. Alpena County - awarded $2,000 for the Ready, Set, Swim program;
5. Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library - awarded $1,000 for the Youth Library Mural project;
6. Alpena Figure Skating Club - awarded $500 for the Holiday Ice Show;
7. Alpena Gymnastics - awarded $1,500 to purchase a balance beam and safety mats;
8. Alpena Hockey Association - awarded $1,500 for the Hockey is for Everyone project;
9. Alpena-Montmorency-Alcona Educational Service District - awarded $1,737 for a Classroom Library Makeover;
10. Alpena Public Schools - awarded $1,000 for the New School-Wide Expectation Visuals project;
11. Alpena Public Schools - awarded $500 for the High School Skate Team Competitions;
12. Art in the Loft - awarded $2,000 for the Ready, Set, Create! program;
13. Atlanta Church of Christ - awarded $3,500 for the Caring Place / Graciously Giving project;
14. Atlanta Community Schools - awarded $500 for the Elementary Playground project;
15. Besser Elementary PAC - awarded $2,500 for Besser Elementary Library Enhancement;
16. Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan, Inc. - awarded $2,000 for the Discover Northeast Michigan History Exhibit project;
17. Black Lake Association - awarded $2,000 to purchase a Water Quality Meter with Dissolved Oxygen Probe;
18. Boys and Girls Club of Alpena - awarded $2,500 for the Triple Play (Mind, Body, and Soul) project;
19. City of Alpena - awarded $2,000 for the Alpena Housing Task Force - Housing Needs Assessment project;
20. City of Rogers City - awarded $3,000 for the Sunrise Side Community Garden;
21. Disability Network Northern Michigan - awarded $1,000 for the Habitat for Humanity Temporary Handicap Ramp project;
22. Disability Network Northern Michigan - awarded $1,000 for the All Access Cooking at the Loft project;
23. East Grand Lake Volunteer Fire Department Inc. - awarded $5,000 for the Turnout Gear 2022 project;
24. Friends of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary - awarded $2,000 for the Ride with FRIENDS of TBNMS project;
25. Friends of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary - awarded $3,000 for the Alpena Community Labyrinth project;
26. Friends Together - awarded $3,000 for the (Actively) Plug into Your Life project;
27. Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore - awarded $2,500 for the Improvements to Camp Woodlands for Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency, and Presque Isle County Girl Scouts project;
28. HeadWaters Land Conservancy - awarded $1,000 for the Lake Avalon Nature Preserve Trail System project;
29. Huron Pines - awarded $2,000 for the Coast Watchers Community Science Monitoring program;
30. Iosco RESA - awarded $2,000 for the Your Child Reads of Alcona and Iosco Counties (YCRAI) project;
31. Johannesburg-Lewiston Schools - awarded $5,000 to purchase winter gear for their Ensuring Every Child Can Explore Outside in the Winter project;
32. Light of Hope - awarded $3,000 for the Garden of Hope project;
33. McLaren Northern Michigan Foundation - awarded $780 for the Justin A. Borra Behavioral Health Center project;
34. New Beginnings Ministry - awarded $2,500 for the Feeding the Hungry Community project;
35. Northeast Michigan Community Partnership, Inc. - awarded $1,000 for the Community Book Reads project;
36. Northeast Michigan Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative - awarded $1,650 for the Preventing Marine Debris Today for Healthy Waters Tomorrow project;
37. Northeast Michigan Trap Neuter Return (TNR) - awarded $1,000 for the Operation Feral Cat project;
38. Park Family Foundation, LLC - awarded $1,000 for the Special Needs Prom project;
39. Park Family Foundation, LLC - awarded $1,500 for the Ready, Set, S.N.A.P. project;
40. Pegasus Springs Therapeutic Riding Center - awarded $2,000 for the Growing the Pegasus Community/Sensory Trail & Capacity Building project;
41. Rayola Inc. - awarded $2,500 for the Comfort Care for Alpena, Alcona, and Montmorency Counties project to provide comfort items for foster children;
42. Rogers City Community Schools - awarded $500 for the High School Refrigerator project;
43. Second Chance Animal Shelter - awarded $2,500 for the Fences for Fido-Shelter Dog Exercise Area project;
44. St. John Lutheran School - awarded $500 for the Let's Play project;
45. The Sunset Project - awarded $1,000 for the Focus 45 Photography Contest;
46. Thunder Bay Arts Council, Inc. - awarded $750 for the Ice Fest 2023 - Sculpting in Ice project;
47. Thunder Bay Folk Society, Inc. - awarded $1,000 for the 8th Annual Thunder Bay Folk Fest;
48. Thunder Bay Transportation Authority - awarded $1,000 for the NEMT Community Transportation project;
49. Township of Alpena - Fire Department - awarded $2,500 for the Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) project;
50. Trinity Episcopal Church - awarded $966 for the Trinity's Food Pantry and Sunday Supper Program project.

Community Impact grants are awarded at CFNEM through two different grant cycles throughout the year. For granting purposes, the Community Endowment Fund consists of the Community Endowment Fund, Genite Family Fund, Chuck and Kathy Ingle Fund, Lappan Fund, Neva Nelson Memorial Fund, Panel Processing Fund, Pfeiffenberger Fund, Marianne Kalivoda Hall Memorial Fund, Reitz Family Fund, Stevens Fund, and Weinkauf Fund. Additional funds supporting grants for this cycle include the Ann M. Kuntz Fund, Mr. and Mrs. O.B. Eustis Memorial Fund, Montmorency County General Fund, Wayne Wire Cloth Fund, Alcona General Fund, Alcona County Health Care Initiative Fund, United Communities of Presque Isle Fund, Lewiston Industrial Development Fund, Presque Isle General Fund, Huron Shores Health Fund and the Spendable Tobacco Fund.

The Community Foundation also approved $37,228 through the annual round of Northeast Michigan Women’s Giving Circle grants. These grants are reviewed and recommended annually by a committee of ten WGC members who serve two-year terms. WGC grants are awarded for issues important to the women of northeast Michigan from the WGC Endowment Fund.

2022 WGC grants include:

1. Alcona County Commission on Aging - awarded $3,000 for the Get Fit Alcona project;
2. Alpena Childcare & Development Center - awarded $1,500 for the Playground Toys project;
3. Alpena County George N. Fletcher Public Library - awarded $1,607 for the Bathroom Baskets and Teen Hygiene Cabinet project;
4. Alpena Gymnastics, Inc - awarded $2,640 for the Balance Beam with Safety Mat project;
5. Boys and Girls Club of Alpena - awarded $3,000 for the Preparing S.M.A.R.T Girls for the World project;
6. Cheboygan-Otsego-Presque Isle Counties Great Start Collaborative - awarded $2,600 for the Project Connect for Presque Isle County project;
7. District Health Department No. 4 - awarded $2,000 for the Mommy & Me project;
8. Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary - awarded $2,638 for the Ride with FRIENDS of TBNMS project;
9. Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore - awarded $1,753 for the Camp Woodlands Improvements for Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency, and Presque Isle County Girl Scouts project;
10. Hope Shores Alliance - awarded $2,500 for the Volunteer Onboarding and Recognition project;
11. Hubbard Lake Bible Church/Sunrise Community Food Pantry - awarded $3,000 for the Feeding the Hungry project;
12. PoWeR! Book Bags - awarded $2,350 for the PoWeR! Book Bags in Montmorency and Presque Isle Counties project;
13. Rayola Inc. - awarded $3,000 for the Comfort Care Items for Children in Foster Care project;
14. The Sunset Project - awarded $3,000 for the Focus 45 Photography Contest;
15. Thunder Bay Arts Council, Inc. - awarded $2,640 for Autumn Bildson's Water in Limestone Sculpture project.

The next opportunity for submitting grant applications is through the Northeast Michigan Youth Advisory Council for youth programs in Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and/or Presque Isle County. Apply online through the Community Foundation Grant Portal at cfnem.org. Applications are due by October 15, 2022.

The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan is a charitable organization committed to providing people who care about the future of our area with unique and effective ways of supporting their community now, and for generations to come. Led by a volunteer board of local citizens, the foundation oversees a group of permanently endowed funds from a wide range of donors. Gifts of all sizes from individuals, families, businesses, and agencies are invested in a balanced, well-managed portfolio to build endowments, enabling support for students and local community nonprofits now and forever.

#####