Community Foundation of Western North Carolina doles out $1.5 million in grants

(November 2023) The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina (CFWNC) approved grants totaling $1,477,690 to nonprofits across the region. The awards were made in CFWNC’s Early Childhood Development, Food & Farming and Human Services focus areas.

Seventy-three Human Services grants totaling $1,373,190 were awarded to nonprofits serving people across the Foundation’s 18-county service area. CFWNC fundholders and donors contributed $526,932 to the total. The co-investors are: Carol Waggle Oliver Fund, Charles F. Hamrick and Marguerite D. Hamrick Charitable Fund, Craig Family Foundation Fund, Crutchfield Charitable Fund, Deerfield Retirement Community Advised Fund, Delphinium Fund, Dogwood Charitable Endowment Fund, Dr. Robert J. and Kimberly S. Reynolds Fund, Fenton Family WNC Fund, Helping Hand Fund, Henri Landwirth Family Endowed Fund, John and Janet Garrett Charitable Fund, Little Acorn Fund – W, Mary Beth Allen Charitable Fund, Moran Family Fund, Mountain Jewell Fund, Oliver Family Fund, Perez Family Fund, Peterson Endowment Fund, CFWNC Professional Advisory Committee Charitable Fund, Rachel Helen Silver Sunshine Fund, Rick and Bridget Eckerd Charitable Fund, Samuel and William Elmore Fund for Mental Wellness, Serviceberry Fund, Terrence Lee One Love Fund, Tina and John McGuire Charitable Fund, Travis and Jenny Boyer Fund, Trillium Fund, Walnut Fund, Wasson – Stowe Charitable Fund, Yeager-Cole Fund and one anonymous fund. A complete list of the grants is available at cfwnc.org.

Several private foundations partner with CFWNC to support projects in Western North Carolina. The Glass Foundation and Lipscomb Family Foundation provided generous support for these grants.

“In this season of gratitude, we are especially thankful for the committed nonprofits we partner with throughout the year,” said President Elizabeth Brazas. “These grants span our region and support children and families, affordable housing, healthcare needs, mental health, food distribution and so much more. The work that these grants represent is significant. Once again, our fundholders and donors have generously provided co-investment, this cycle totaling more than a third of the funding. We could not be more grateful.”

Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP) was awarded a $45,000 Early Childhood Development grant to expand access to the Farm to Preschool project resources and programming across 18 counties of WNC. Farm to Preschool includes edible gardens, cooking and taste tests with local food, farmer visits and farm field trips, and serving locally grown food in meals or snacks.

Carolina Common Enterprise as fiscal sponsor for WNC Farm to Table (FTT) was awarded a $59,500 Food & Farming grant to support the efforts of the Jackson Food Council to develop a publicly accessible commercial kitchen as well as a Food Policy Action Plan (FPAP). Jackson County is home to 215 farms and seven seasonal farmers markets but lacks a publicly available kitchen where farmers and vendors can process and prepare foods for sale and distribution. The Council and local officials will develop a FPAP modeled after the successful Asheville Food Policy Action Plan. It will include a community engagement model to determine the priorities for increasing food security and developing a healthy food system based on the needs and opportunities identified in the county’s 2023 Community Food Assessment.

CFWNC works with families, businesses and nonprofits to strengthen communities through the creation of charitable funds and strategic grantmaking. A permanent charitable resource, the Foundation manages over 1,200 funds and facilitated $34 million in grants last year bringing total distributions to more than $362 million since its founding in 1978. Learn more at www.cfwnc.org.