Springdale, AR— In the spirit of the holiday season, Northwest Arkansas Community Foundation (NWACF) awarded 56 grants totaling $54,726. The grants were made possible through personal donations from board members and friends of the foundation to its unrestricted grant fund. In 2003, NWACF's board of directors awarded $58,157 to 59 nonprofit agencies from the same fund.
Virginia Mocivnik of Rogers chaired the grants committee for 2004 and offered these observations on the grantees.
"It is never easy deciding which nonprofit organization is more deserving of a grant. The bottom line is that all were worthy and our committee had to make some difficult decisions in reviewing those applications," explained Mocivnik
Suzanne Ward, Executive Director of NWACF, concurred with Mocivnik's remarks.
"This marks our second straight year to award unrestricted grants and it is always a learning process. Our board learns about the needs in our region and agencies learn about the resources that NWACF has to offer," stated Ward.
Northwest Arkansas Community Foundation was founded in 1999 and serves Benton, Carroll, Madison, and Washington counties. The unrestricted fund can make grants in six key areas including arts and culture, education, environment and animal welfare, health, human services, and public society benefit. 2004 applications were accepted for capacity building, equipment purchases, fundraising events, professional development, and seed money for special projects.
"The committee felt strongly that we wanted to award grants that will make a difference to the organization's overall health. This meant we would not award grants for general operating support or capital campaigns. Individuals, partisan political organizations, or organizations with religious affiliations were also excluded," stressed Mocivnik.
The following organizations received one-year grants of up to $1,000:
Adult Development Center of Benton County, Inc. (Rogers) for Staff Training
Arkansas Rice Depot (Little Rock) for Food for Kids Backpacks
Arts Center of the Ozarks (Springdale) for Video Projection Support & Equipment
Arts Live Theatre (Fayetteville) for Comprehensive Communications Program
Bella Vista Courtesy Van, Inc. (Bella Vista) for Vehicle Fuel Supplement
Benton County Sunshine School (Bentonville) for Equipment for Sensory Room
Bentonville Library Foundation (Bentonville) for Bentonville Public Library-Audio Books
Big Brothers-Big Sisters of Northwest Arkansas (Springdale) for Big League & Ambassador Volunteer Recruitment
Botanical Garden Society of the Ozarks, Inc. (Fayetteville) for Computer with Access Database
Boys/Girls Club of Siloam Springs (Siloam Springs) for After School Program Computer
Carroll & Madison Library System (Berryville) for Books in Bloom at the Crescent: A Garden Party Celebration
Children's Safety Cente (Springdale) for Forensic Interviewer Training
Circle of Life Hospice (Springdale) for Strengthening Local Giving
Community Development Partnership of Western Carroll Co. (Eureka Springs) for Increasing Access to Homeownership
Council on Aging (Springdale) for Meals on Wheels Meal Carriers for Seniors
Court Appointed Special Advocates (C.A.S.A.) (Springdale) for Strengthening Local Giving
Creative Action Network for Youth (Springdale) for Art Supplies
Economic Opportunity Agency-Children's House (Fayetteville) for Developmental Screening & Services for Abused Children
Elkins Community Center (Elkins) for Youth Programs
Eureka Springs High School (Eureka Springs) for East Lab Upgrade
Family Network (Springdale) for Preventing Failure-to-Thrive Babies
Fayetteville Public Education Foundation (Fayetteville) for New Database Software
Genesis House - Siloam Springs (Siloam Springs) for AR Management Info System (ARMIS) Licensing
Gravette Medical Center Hospital (Gravette) for Networking of the Gravette Medical Center Hospital
Helping Oncology Patients Excel (HOPE, Inc.) (Springdale) for Program Database Expansion
Humane Society (Rogers) for Spay & Neuter Voucher Program
Huntsville School District-Watson Intermediate School (Huntsville) for Video Projectors
KIDCARE (Springdale) for Curriculum Development of Springdale History Unit
Kids for Health (Springdale) for Testimonial Promotional Video
Lane House, Inc. (Eureka Springs) for Creative Movement Workshop
Life Styles, Inc. (Fayetteville) for Healthy Life Styles Program support
Madison County Health Coalition, Inc. (Huntsville) for Better Health Through Better Communication
Madison County Pet Shelter (Huntsville) for Spay & Neuter Services
Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter (Bentonville) for Emergency Shelter for Children
Northwest Arkansas Crisis Intervention Center (Springdale) for Employing & Training Additional Crisis Helpline Staff
Northwest Arkansas Education Service Coop (Springdale) for Preschool Special Needs Equipment
Northwest Arkansas Free Health Center (Fayetteville) for Diabetes Prescription Drug Fund
Northwest Arkansas Head Start Human Services, Inc. (Rogers) for LAP-D Normed Assessment of Children-Benton County
Northwest Arkansas Head Start Human Services, Inc. (Rogers) for LAP-D Normed Assessment of Children-Carroll County
Northwest Arkansas Head Start Human Services, Inc. (Rogers) for LAP-D Normed Assessment of Children-Madison County
Northwest Arkansas Rape Crisis, Inc. (Springdale) for Rural & Hispanic Communities-Expanding Services
OHC - Carroll County Senior Activity Center (Berryville) for Home Delivered Meals to Frail Elderly
Ozark Guidance, Inc. (Siloam Springs) for Children's Summer Program-Western Benton Co.
Project for Victims of Family Violence (Fayetteville) for Children Support Group
Restoration Ministries-Children's Advocacy Center (Rogers) for Children's Advocacy Center of Benton Co. Brochures
Rocky Creek Horses Help Therapeutic Riding Center (Rogers) for New Tack Purchase
Rogers Little Theater (Rogers) for Commercial Dishwasher
Seven Hills Homeless Shelter, Inc. (Fayetteville) for Medical Supplies for Homeless Health Care
Siloam Springs Public Schools (Siloam Springs) for Science Tools for Kids
Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Benton County (Bentonville) for Marketing with Panache
Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Washington County (Springdale) for Board Orientation Library
Springdale School District-Harp Elementary School (Springdale) for Kindergarten Readiness Kits
Susan G. Komen Foundation, Inc. (Fayetteville) for Ozark Affiliate Outreach Program
Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge & Foundation (Eureka Springs) for Natural Enclosure for Big Cats
Walton Arts Center (Fayetteville) for Support for Presentation of Guess How Much I Love You
Youth Bridge, Inc. (Fayetteville) for Substance Abuse School Supplies and Workbooks
NWACF will honor the organizations and their volunteer board of directors at a reception on Monday, December 20 from 4-5 p.m. at their Har-Ber Meadows office in Springdale.
The Foundation is a public charity whose mission is to connect donors to their charitable goals. It has given out almost $3 million in grants in its five-year history to organizations throughout northwest Arkansas while maintaining administrative expenses under 1 %. The Foundation is a member of the Council on Foundations and has met all national standards for governance and accountability.
