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The Vault, Warner Library and Farmer City Library Among Groups To Receive Grant Money From Illinois Prairie Community Foundation

The Illinois Community Prairie Foundation earlier this week announced recipients for 77 grants to non-profits in DeWitt, Livingston, Logan and McLean Counties in central Illinois.

 

Among local recipients were The Vault teen center in Clinton, Warner Library in Clinton and the Farmer City Public Library. Michelle Witzke with The Vault told Regional Radio News Wednesday morning on the WHOW Morning Show they will use the $4,000 grant to support their Golden Gears Cafe training program which teaches youth small business and leadership skills.

 

 

The Warner Library received $700 to continue digitization efforts. Business Manager Samantha Rusk indicates their “Memory Lab” provides tools and education for patrons to preserve their memories for a lifetime, while also allowing library staff to digitize many items in archives so they can be posted online for public view.

 

 

Director of the Warner Library, Bobbi Perryman indicates this will be a great opportunity for the community and falls in line with their efforts in recent years of digitization.

 

 

Amy Johnson, Director of the Farmer City Public Library, indicates they received $700 to continue to develop the STEM materials they have available to the community at their library.

 

 

The Farmer City Public Library has been proactive in providing STEM opportunities to the community and Johnson says this grant money will help them further those efforts.

 

 

The Atlanta Public Library received $4,000 for their program "The Discovery Box". Director Catherine Maciariello says the former Union Hall will house a special space for kids called "The Create Space".

 

 

Maciariello calls the Illinois Community Prairie Foundation their primary funder and says it allows them to do a number of things with their programming.

 

 

Michele Evans with the Illinois Community Prairie Foundation says they awarded over $140,000 in grant money to the various groups across the four counties.

 

 

Other local recipients of the grants Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois and the DeWitt/Piatt Bi-County Health Department. Evans says the Health Department received over $1,600 to help continue their dental clinic for their communities.

 

 

Community Action received $1,400 for their “Hand Up Project” project to empower the low-income population to lead a lasting self-sufficient lifestyle through a series of classes and coaching.

 

Other groups receiving funds included:

 

>>The Child Protection Network who received $500 for “Caring After Abuse: A Caregiver Support and Education Group” to provide education about trauma and its effects, self-care tactics for caregivers and information on parenting children who have experienced trauma.

 

>>Girl Scouts of Central Illinois received $650 for “Outdoor Skill Development I and II at Camp Peairs” to support two Outdoor Development events that will help girls develop life and leadership skills, discover new abilities and take on unique challenges in the outdoors.

 

Evans says applications for 2020 grants from the Foundation’s Women to Women Giving Circle and Youth Engaged in Philanthropy (YEP) will be available in October. 

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