Community Needs Archives - Indian River Community Foundation

Community Foundation Awards $137,000 to Four Local Nonprofits

October 20, 2021 Leave a Comment

Indian River Community Foundation awarded grants totaling $137,000 to nonprofit charitable organizations serving Indian River County. The grants were reviewed by a Grants Committee comprised of volunteers Pat Brier, Toni Hamner, Dale Jacobs, Wanda Lincoln, Ed Massey, Dawn Michael, Angelia Perry, Larry Salustro and Louis Schacht. The grants were awarded from the Community Enrichment Fund, and included the following:

$50,000 to Substance Awareness Center for Peer Support.
$37,000 to Childcare Resources of Indian River for the Childcare Resources Education Advancement and Training for Early Educators (CREATE) program.
$25,000 to Ballet Vero Beach to continue Programs for School Aged Children.
$25,000 to Florida State Parks Foundation for equipment to help save the endangered Red-Cockaded Woodpecker at St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park.

While most of the Community Foundation’s grants are awarded by clients through donor advised funds, Indian River Community Foundation’s competitive grant program is made possible through the generosity of anonymous donors to several grantmaking funds, including the Community Enrichment Fund. These valuable resources support the Community Foundation’s mission of building a better community through donor-driven philanthropy.

Indian River Community Foundation was established in 2008 with a mission of building a better community through donor-driven philanthropy. With assets of approximately $90 million in 200 charitable giving accounts, the Community Foundation and its clients have awarded more than $80 million in grants, mostly to nonprofit charitable organizations located in Indian River County, Florida. Visit www.ircommunityfoundation.org to learn more.

Photo Identifications in this Article:

Substance Awareness Council: Carrie Lester and Irene Cauwels of Substance Awareness Center with Jeff Pickering CEO of Indian River Community Foundation. Photo by Maureen Nicolace.

Childcare Resources: Stephanie Harmody, Shannon McGuire Bowman, Jeff Pickering of Indian River Community Foundation, and Patrick Farrah with children in the Turtle Room at Childcare Resources. Photo by Maureen Nicolace.

Ballet Vero Beach: (seated) Camilo A. Rodriguez, Adam Schnell of Ballet Vero Beach and Jeff Pickering, CEO of Indian River Community Foundation. Standing: Katherine Eppink, Anders Southerland, and Debi Arseneaux, along with Learning Alliance puppet friends Bob and Moonshot. Photo by Maureen Nicolace.

St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park: Jeff Pickering, CEO; Brooke Sauserman, Foundation Assistant; and Chiaka Nwosu, Foundation Coordinator all of Indian River Community Foundation, along with Dylan Gavagni, Park Manager at St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park. Photo by Maureen Nicolace.

Community Foundation Grants $25,000 to Help Protect Federally Endangered Woodpecker at St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park

October 19, 2021 Leave a Comment

Indian River Community Foundation President and CEO, Jeff Pickering with St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park Manager, Dylan Gavagni.
Photo credit: Maureen Nicolace.

The Indian River Community Foundation recently awarded $25,000 to the Florida State Parks Foundation to help save the endangered Red-cockaded woodpecker at St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park.

Red-cockaded woodpeckers are only found in about 10 locations in Florida state, one of which is St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park in Fellsmere. The Florida State Parks Foundation aims to purchase a Bobcat 5600 Toolcat with the funds, which will maintain the birds’ habitat.

“The survival of this rare woodpecker is now dependent on human intervention to ensure they have food, shelter and suitable nesting sites,” said Foundation CEO Julia Gill Woodward. “The preservation of their existing habitat in Indian River County is crucial, and the Florida Park Service is well-positioned to fulfill this need thanks to their experience with land management and their understanding of species conservation.”

“Given the enormity of the problems that philanthropy is often called on to address, this grant represents something very specific that our Community Foundation can do to make a meaningful difference in our local environment,” said Indian River Community Foundation President and CEO Jeff Pickering. “Extinction is forever, and our support of this project is something that we are proud to provide to give these special birds a fighting chance at long-term survival.”

Click here to read more about this grant in an article written by Julia Gill Woodward, Chief Executive Officer of the Florida State Parks Foundation.

United Way Delivers Education Grants to 15 Organizations

August 20, 2021 Leave a Comment

By: Alexander Sylvia

United Way of Indian River County has a long tradition of carrying out its mission of helping people live their best possible lives. United Way seeks to better our community through unity, bringing the people of Indian River County together to raise funds, give grants and volunteer. Recently, United Way announced grants totaling $788,112 to fifteen local nonprofit agencies that work in the area of education from a two-year grant cycle from July 2021 through June 2023.

Due to the complications from COVID-19, United Way had to do things a little differently this past year. The organization reached out in February to search for volunteers to virtually serve on their Citizen Review Panels. United Way utilizes Citizen Review panels, made up of community volunteers, to field grant applications and find programs that benefit identified deficiencies in our community. This past year, the Citizen Review Panels have been meeting online to identify community issues and advise the United Way Board of Directors in their donation.

**List of the 15 organizations impacted by this grant cycle.**

These donations to the fifteen education based organizations are being made to reach United Way’s 2021-2023 community goals. Those goals are:

To increase to 85% the children who enter Kindergarten ready to succeed
To increase to 90% of 3rd Graders who are performing on grade Level and increase their positive behaviors
To increase to 90% the students who graduate on time from High School

Using Indian River Indicators, we can see how United Way’s funding priorities align with community needs. Indian River Indicators shows the county’s data related to these goals, and a projection of where the data is trending. For example, currently 58% of children who enter Kindergarten do so ready to succeed. Indian River Indicator’s interactive data charts shows how far we’ve come and more importantly, how far we have to go to reach the goal of 85%. To view an Indian River Indicators report based on United Way’s goals, click here.

If you would like to help United Way reach their goals, either by volunteering or donating, click on the buttons below!

Donate!

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