WCCF Announces Fall 2022 Community Grants

The Wayne County Community Foundation (WCCF) Board of Trustees met in November and approved grant awards for the Fall competitive grant cycle. Thirteen organizations were awarded grants totaling $272,468.66 from some of the Foundation’s named Community and Field of Interest funds:

A Whole Community, Inc. received a $26,000 grant from an anonymous community fund to purchase a newer delivery truck for their 2023 Community Food Project that provides farm-fresh produce to needy individuals.

Adaptive Sports Program of Ohio received a $10,329.66 grant from the Lloyd W. James Memorial Fund to purchase needed equipment for their various sports programs for Wayne County residents with physical disabilities.  

Apple Creek Volunteer Fire Department and Emergency Squad Inc. received a $13,000 grant from the Beaverson Foundation Community Fund to purchase additional equipment and replace a cable machine for their expanded workout room.

Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry Inc. received a $3,500 grant from the John G. Taggert Community Fund to process deer donated by local hunters to provide food pantries and ministries with healthy protein in Wayne County.

Friends of Hospice Wayne County Ohio received a $64,169 grant from the Beaverson Foundation Community Fund to purchase a 16-foot box truck with liftgate to use in picking up donations in Wayne County.

Grace Church (Wooster) received a $3,000 grant from the Nolan and Elsie Hite Community Fund to replace an outdated and non-functional defibrillator.

Heartland Education Community, Inc. received a $10,000 grant from the Carl E. Congdon, Jr. and Susanna Congdon McIntyre Memorial Fund to support character building and mentoring outside the classroom during the 2022-2023 year.

Marshallville Historical Society received a $15,000 grant from the Florence L. Rice Community Fund for renovations to their cabin that houses their historical artifacts.

OneEighty, Inc. received a $25,000 grant from an anonymous community fund to purchase security equipment for their facilities to prevent and reduce violence at OneEighty, as phase one of their organizational and neighborhood safety project.      

Persophenea’s Giving Plate received a conditional grant of $25,000 from an anonymous community fund to acquire essential supplies, a fully functioning facility, and to upgrade vital equipment as part of an organizational makeover.

Rittman Exempted Village Schools received a $15,000 grant from the Carl E. Congdon, Jr. and Susanna Congdon McIntyre Memorial Fund and the John Kaylor Memorial Fund for the Get Growing with Hydroponics project for the Rittman, Orrville, and Southeast Local schools.

Wayne County Fire & Rescue Association received a $52,470 grant from the Robert L. and Kathleen M. Polsky Foundation Community Fund to replace and renew their emergency medical services (EMS) training equipment and their facility automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

The Wilderness Center, Inc. received a $10,000 grant from the Helen A. Sprowls Charitable Fund to purchase native plants for the restoration and improvement of land in Funk Bottoms to return it to a natural wetlands habitat.

The WCCF is a not-for-profit charitable community organization established in 1978 to accept contributions, create and administer funds, and make grants for the benefit of the people of Wayne County. Since 1978, the Foundation has awarded more than $103 million in the form of grants and scholarships from its 535 separate funds.

Its Community and Field-of-Interest funds permit the WCCF Board of Trustees to be responsive to the changing needs of the community. Donations to these funds by individuals, families, businesses and service organizations help to increase the amount available for grants each year. Contact Melanie Reusser Garcia, WCCF Executive Director, for more information.

Competitive grant applications from nonprofit, tax-exempt, charitable organizations should be submitted by March 1 and September 1 each year. The grant guidelines and online application are available on their website, www.waynecountycommunityfoundation.org.