Beginning Sept. 1, Bath Community Fund of Akron Community Foundation will accept grant proposals for programs that enrich the Bath community and improve residents’ quality of life.
Grant applications will be considered for programs that preserve Bath’s historical and environmental legacy, enhance the local arts and culture landscape, serve youth through education and recreation, and meet residents’ social service needs. Approximately $14,000 will be available for grantmaking.
The fund, which was created in 2014 by a group of committed Bath residents, is a permanent endowment dedicated to strengthening the Bath community for current and future generations by providing leadership, fostering collaboration, and creating a legacy of charitable giving.
“This is just our second year of grantmaking, and we hope to make as big an impact this year as we did in 2016,” said Mary Anne Krejci, fund advisory board member and chair of the Grants Committee.
Last year, in its first grant-making cycle, the fund awarded $14,500 to five area nonprofits, including Crown Point Ecology Center, Western Reserve Playhouse, Victory Gallop and the Bath Park Board.
“Grant awards will be determined by how closely the projects align with BCF’s goals, objectives and mission,” added Jen Hardin, BCF Grants Committee member.
Detailed information on BCF’s grant focus can be found on the fund’s website at www.akroncf.org/BCF. Qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations may apply online beginning Friday, Sept. 1, through Sunday, Oct. 1. A link to the application is available at www.akroncf.org/ApplyBCF.
A five-person committee of BCF board members, donors and community leaders will review the requests and make determinations. Grant decisions will be announced in November.
Questions about the application process should be directed to John Garofalo, vice president of community investment, at 330-436-5624 or [email protected].
About Bath Community Fund
Established in 2014 by a group of committed Bath residents, Bath Community Fund is a permanent endowment dedicated to strengthening the Bath community for current and future generations by providing leadership, fostering collaboration and creating a legacy of charitable giving. The fund is committed to responding to community needs, helping the less fortunate, supporting local nonprofits, and reinforcing and preserving Bath’s historical and environmental legacy. Since its inception, the fund has grown to more than $350,000 while reinvesting $14,500 into the Bath community. The fund is currently embarking on the “For Bath, Forever” endowment campaign to raise $2.018 million by Bath’s bicentennial in 2018. For more information, contact Jody Miller Konstand, advisory board chair, at 330-618-4477 or [email protected].
About Akron Community Foundation
Celebrating 62 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation embraces and enhances the work of charitable people who make a permanent commitment to the good of the community. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. As of March 31, 2017, it is a philanthropic endowment of nearly $202 million with a growing family of more than 570 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation’s funds have awarded more than $139 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.akroncf.org.