IPCF Awards 86 Grants to Local Nonprofits

BLOOMINGTON – Illinois Prairie Community Foundation has awarded more than $206,490 in three categories of competitive grants to 86 nonprofit programs in McLean, DeWitt, Livingston and Logan counties. Grant awards ranged from $500 to $6,000. Funding came from donors to the Community Foundation’s annual campaign, the Jerome Mirza Arts & Culture Fund, the Sapphire Sky Wind Fund and several endowments at the Community Foundation.

Receiving 48 General Grants totaling $110,312 for programs in the fields of education, health and wellness, and youth were:

• Back 2 School Alliance – $3,110 for “Back 2 School Shoes”
• Back 2 School Alliance – $2,000 for “Backpacks for Big Kids”
• Back 2 School Alliance – $1,000 for “Mentoring our Kids”
• Best Buddies in Central Illinois – $2,000 for “Best Buddies Leadership”
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Illinois – $3,500 for “Comprehensive Mentoring”
• Bloomington Normal YMCA – $1,746 for “Camp Sparrow at Sheridan Elementary School”
• Bloomington Public Library – $2,000 for “Juneteenth at BPL”
• BN-Welcoming – $1,500 for “Website Development & Community Engagement Event”
• Boys & Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal – $4,000 for “STEAM Powered Play”
• Center for Hope Outreach Programs – $3,750 for “Center for Hope Outreach Programs”
• Clinton Community Educational Foundation – $2,000 for “Read Across Clinton”
• Community Connection Group of Central Illinois – $1,200 for “Team Connection”
• Community Health Care Clinic – $5,000 for “Prescription Medicines at CHCC”
• Cruisin’ Outta Poverty Services (C.O.P.S.) – $1,500 for “Homeless Outreach Program”
• Cultural Fest Inc. – $1,000 for “Kid Activity Zone”
• Easterseals Central Illinois – $2,500 for “Cozy Corner”
• Encore Developmental Services – $1,500 for “Communication and Community Access”
• Eversight – $2,000 for “Sight-Saving Recovery Supplies for McLean and Livingston Counties”
• Faith in Action – $3,000 for “Outreach to the Hispanic Community in McLean County”
• First Christian Church – $1,500 for “The Helping Shelf”
• Girls on the Run of Central Illinois – $1,000 for “Power Up with Girls on the Run”
• Great Plains LIFE Foundation – $2,000 for “Stay 4 Project”
• Homes of Hope – $3,000 for “Functional, Useful, Necessary Skills Program”
• INtegRIty Counseling – $2,000 for “Serving with INtegRIty”
• Jump 4 Joy Squad Inc. – $1,000 for “Jump Rope Classes and Workshops”
• Lincoln Pastoral Counseling Services – $2,000 for “Subsidy Program”
• Living Well United – $1,600 for “Rural Grandparents Raising Grandkids”
• Martin Township Public Library – $800 for “Nature Exploration Kits for Kids”
• McLean County Center for Human Services – $2,800 for “Automated External Defibrillator Project”
• McLean County Children’s Advocacy Center – $1,500 for “Prevent 360°”
• McLean County Extension Service Foundation – $500 for “Micro Pantry Box Construction Project”
• McLean County Unit School District No. 5 Educational Foundation – $4,000 for “Elementary School STEM Stations”
• Miller Park Zoological Society – $1,200 for “The Putting Zoo”
• Promise Council at Bloomington High School – $1,500 for “Connect Transit Bus Pass Program”
• School Street Food Pantry – $4,000 for “School Street Food Pantry: Access to Culturally Diverse Foods”
• That Kid Place – $4,000 for “That Kid Place”
• The Baby Fold – $2,000 for “Outdoor Learning and Engagement”
• The Baby Fold – $1,156 for “Hammitt School”
• The Salvation Army Bloomington – $3,500 for “The Salvation Army Food Pantry”
• The Salvation Army Lincoln 360 Life Center – $3,500 for “The Salvation Army Lincoln 360 Life Center Pantry”
• The Salvation Army Pontiac 360 Life Center – $3,000 for “Food Pantry”
• The Vault Community Center – $4,500 for “Golden Gears Small Business Leadership Program”
• United Way of Logan County – $3,000 for “Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Logan County”
• Village of New Holland – $2,000 for “Free Senior Meals”
• Weldon Public Library – $1,300 for “Back to School Bash”
• Wesley United Methodist Church – $4,000 for “Wesley Distribution Ministry”
• YouthBuild McLean County – $1,500 for “YouthBuild McLean County”
• YWCA McLean County – $2,150 for “Youth Development Summer Camp”

Receiving 29 Arts and Culture Grants totaling $65,130 were:

• Board of Trustees of Illinois State University – $1,900 for “2024 Concerts on the Quad”
• Brass Band of Central Illinois – $1,500 for “2025 Spring Concert”
• City of Bloomington BPCA – $2,000 for “2024 First Friday Concert”
• Community Players Theater – $1,500 for “Community Players Theater – Mary Poppins”
• Cultural Fest Inc. – $2,000 for “Saturday Stage Program”
• Further Jazz – $1,500 for “3rd Annual Further Jazz Festival”
• Girl Scouts of Central Illinois – $980 for “Girl Scout Arts Programs – McLean County”
• Greater Livingston County Arts Council – $600 for “Dave Herzog’s Marionettes”
• Heartland Jazz Orchestra Foundation – $1,500 for “Community Jazz Concerts”
• Heartland Productions – $3,200 for “Two New Play Programs”
• Holiday Spectacular – $2,000 for “Holiday Spectacular Celebrates America Holiday Spectacular”
• Holiday Spectacular – $2,000 for “Holiday Spectacular: Free Tickets for Low Income Community Members 2024”
• Illinois Art Station – $2,000 for “The Art of Voting: A Creation Station Collaboration”
• Illinois Chamber Music Festival at Illinois Wesleyan University – $3,000 for “2024 Illinois Chamber Music Festival and Camp at IWU”
• Illinois Shakespeare Festival – $2,000 for “Courtyard Music Series at Ewing Cultural Center”
• Illinois Symphony Orchestra – $4,000 for “Illinois Symphony Orchestra Concert for Kids”
• Illinois Voices Theatre – Echoes – $1,000 for “Illinois Voice Theatre – Echoes”
• Illinois Voices Theatre – Seedling – $1,500 for “Illinois Voices Theatre – Seedling”
• Illinois Wesleyan University – $3,000 for “50th Annual Illinois Wesleyan Jazz Festival”
• Inside Out Accessible Art – $2,500 for “Inside Out Accessible Art”
• McLean County Historical Society – $5,000 for “2024 Evergreen Memorial Cemetery Walk”
• Music Connections Foundation – $4,000 for “Niños y Música Kindermusik Class at Western Avenue Community Center
• Prairie Fire Theatre – $3,450 for “She Loves Me (A Broadway Musical)”
• fwd – $3,000 for “pt.fwd Headliner Concert Series”
• The Center for Creativity & Community – $2,100 for “The Center for Creativity and Community”
• The Vault Community Center – $2,400 for “Summer/After-School Arts Enrichment Program”
• Threshold to Hope – $2,000 for “Threshold to Hope”
• Town of Normal Children’s Discovery Museum Foundation – $2,000 for “Makers & Musicians”
• West Bloomington Revitalization Project – $1,500 for “Creativity Reclaimed”

Receiving 3 David and Kay Williams Music Education Grants totaling $7,548.41 were:

• City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department – SOAR – $4,048.41 for “SOARing with Music”
• Cruisin’ Outta Poverty Services (C.O.P.S.) – $1,000 for “Creativity Showcase with C.O.P.S.”
• Share the Music – $2,500 for “Share the Music”

Receiving 6 Sol Shulman Jewish Life and Education Grants totaling $23,500 were:

• Illinois Symphony Orchestra Inc. – $4,000 for “ISO Around the Town Performance Celebrating Jewish Music and History”
• Moses Montefiore Temple – $5,000 for “Celebration of Jewish Life and Holidays”
• Moses Montefiore Temple – $6,000 for “Jewish Life and Learning”
• Moses Montefiore Temple – $3,890 for “Leading with Love and Music”
• Moses Montefiore Temple – $600 for “Literacy for Our Learners”
• Moses Montefiore Temple – $4,010 for “Sharing Music, Building Community”

Along with $55,000 awarded by the foundation’s Women to Women Giving Circle, $38,775 from the Environment & Nature Fund, and $11,985 from the foundation’s Youth Engaged in Philanthropy (YEP) cohort, IPCF will award a record $312,250 in competitive grants this year.

About Illinois Prairie Community Foundation
Illinois Prairie Community Foundation, now in its 25th year, encourages and facilitates philanthropy in McLean, DeWitt, Livingston and Logan counties by connecting donors who care with causes that matter to them. The Foundation currently manages assets in more than 200 funds including endowments and donor advised, fiscal sponsorship and scholarship funds.

Contact
Michele Evans, Grants & Communications Director | 309-662-4477