From Jenni Hanna
January brings a lot of announcements from the Decatur County Community Foundation, including
scholarships, new grant opportunities, recent grant recipients, and new board members.
Current grant opportunities and deadlines include:
Teacher Grants – Up to $500 in funding is available to Decatur County educators to use toward
creative, innovative classroom projects that cannot be funded by other means. Teacher grant
applications are open through January 31 st .
Scholarships – Scholarship applications are open through February 1 at 11:59pm. Approximately
70 scholarships are available to the 2024 graduating class. A few scholarships are also available
for college students and adults returning to school.
Small Grants – Requests for up to $1,500 are due on February 5 th .
Large Grants – Letters of Intent are due February 9. Any 501c3 interested in applying for a grant
between $1,500-$15,000 needs to complete a Letter of Intent by February 9. The Foundation
will review each proposed project to ensure it meets areas of funding priorities.
Women’s and Children’s Grants – These applications are currently available through Thursday,
February 29. Funding is available to help with projects that address issues facing women and
children in Decatur County. One grant for $1,500 and two grants for $1,000 will be awarded.
In other news, DCCF Board of Directors recently approved its first Capital Campaign Grant to the
Speranza House. $60,000 was awarded to Speranza House for a second recovery home. In addition, two
small grants were recently approved. These were for a new laptop at the Community Healthcare Clinic,
and to Decatur County Memorial Hospital to assist with its Community Health Needs Assessment
programming.
With the start of the new calendar year, the Foundation also welcomes new board members, Kate Bedel
and Rob Eversole. Kate is a retired CPA, and Rob has retired from dentistry practice.
The two fill
vacancies created by Kristi Jarvis and Steve Freeman, who each have served on the Foundation Board
since January 2018. The new year also brings new officers. The 2024 executive team includes Bill Corya,
President; Rick Nobbe, Vice President; Rick Johnson, Secretary; and Kristi Jarvis, Immediate Past
President.
“In addition to all of these happenings at the Foundation, we are also happy to be a part of the Lilly
Endowment’s new GIFT VIII Challenge,” said Tami Wenning, DCCF Executive Director. “That challenge
encourages donations to community grant-making funds, all of which support small and large grants,
teacher grants, fire department grants and more. Donations to those funds are currently being matched
at an amazing $2 for every $1 donated.”
For more information on which funds are considered community funds, how to start a community fund,
or how to apply for one of the various grants, contact the Foundation at 812-662-6364 or
info@dccound.org, or visit dccfound.org.
