Press Release: September 11, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: 614/251-4000, Carol Harmon x 113

THE COLUMBUS FOUNDATION AWARDS GRANTS TO SUPPORT BASIC NEEDS, DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN, AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

Columbus, OH (September 11, 2008)—The Governing Committee of The Columbus Foundation has announced $368,600 in traditional grants to 11 central Ohio nonprofit organizations committed to supporting basic needs such as food, shelter, and clothing. Organizations also received grants for programs targeting disadvantaged children, mental retardation and developmental disabilities.  The grants were approved at the Committee’s summer meeting.

Traditional Grants Awarded

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio Inc.—$50,000 to support Project Mentor, with the goal of recruiting and supporting 10,000 volunteer mentors by 2012.
  
  
• Childhood League, Inc.—$45,100 to support Project BELONG, which will provide full-day care in an inclusive classroom.
  
  
• Children’s Hunger Alliance—$25,000 to improve health and nutrition for low-income children by expanding access to USDA child nutrition programs in schools, afterschool programs, and home-based childcare and providing nutrition and physical fitness education at afterschool sites.
  

• Court Appointed Special Advocates of Franklin County—$36,500 to support the Growth and Expansion project, which will increase recruitment and retention of volunteers.
  
  
• I KNOW I CAN—$60,000 to support general operating expenses for the Summer Scholars program and the College Retention program.
  
  
• Kaleidoscope Youth Center Inc.—$25,000 to provide skill-building support groups for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth.
  
  
• Lutheran Social Services of Central Ohio—$25,000 to support the implementation of a professional advancement ladder at Faith Mission.
  
  
• Material Assistance Providers, Inc. dba MAP Furniture Bank—$25,000 to continue and expand services.
  
  
• Mid-Ohio FoodBank—$50,000 to provide operating support.
  
  
• US Together, Inc.—$15,000 to support the costs of a training apartment to train 100 refugees and immigrants on tenant responsibilities and how to manage daily household life in an American setting.
  
  
• Westerville Area Resource Ministry (WARM)—$12,000 to hire a part-time employment counselor for STOP (support to overcome poverty), a program offering employment services to unemployed people.
  
  

The Traditional Grants Program, launched this year, provides funding opportunities for nonprofits organizations with a PowerPhilanthropy® portrait. Deadlines occur twice a year. The next Traditional Grants Program application deadline is February 6, 2009.

For more information on the Foundation’s Traditional Grants Program, please visit GO! GrantsOpportunites at www.columbusfoundation.org or contact Lisa Courtice at 614/251-4000 or lcourtice@columbusfoundation.org.

The Columbus Foundation is the trusted philanthropic advisor to nearly 1,700 individuals, families, and businesses, who have created unique funds to make a difference in the lives of others through the most effective philanthropy possible. Serving the region for 65 years, The Columbus Foundation is one of the ten largest community foundations in the United States today, with assets of over $1 billion. The Foundation's new online resource, PowerPhilanthropy®, makes it possible for donors and the public to access valuable information about central Ohio nonprofits.

For more information visit www.columbusfoundation.org or call 614/251-4000.