FINDLAY, OH — The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation awarded a presidential discretionary grant totaling $2,500 to support the Findlay Bicentennial Arch.  The funds to support this grant were provided by the Bank One Unrestricted Fund.

The project will replicate historical arches adorning Main Street Findlay during the 1887 Natural Gas Celebration. The Bicentennial Arch will be constructed near the Main Street Bridge to celebrate the bicentennial of Findlay.  It is estimated that 23,500 vehicles will pass beneath the arch daily.

About The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation

The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation will improve the quality of life in Hancock County through collaborative leadership, responsible grantmaking, and the development of philanthropic giving. Established in 1992 as an outgrowth of a one-time gift from L. Dale Dorney, the Community Foundation has granted more than $25 million to fund projects that support our community.  Visit www.community-foundation.com or call 419-425-1100 to learn more about how the Community Foundation is helping our community.

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As part of the event, HTH awarded $37,716 in grants to three local agencies. HTH members voted at their March meeting and selected the Hancock County Center for Safe and Healthy Children, Family Resource Center and Cancer Patient Services to receive grant funds. Cancer Patient Services received a grant of $3,000 to support their Campus Companions project. Family Resource Center received a grant of $8,000 to support their Adolescent Suicide Prevention program. Hancock County Center for Safe and Healthy Children received a grant of $26,716 to assist in continuing their program through 2013.

In only five years, Handbags that Help has granted $227,385 to support the following eleven local nonprofit organizations: Hancock Center for Safe and Healthy Children, Habitat for Humanity, Camp Fire, Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Services, Hancock Christian Clearing House, Caughman Health Center, Findlay Hope House for the Homeless, Findlay YMCA, Family Resource Center, Cancer Patient Services and Century Health.

Handbags That Help was formed in 2007 by a group of women committed to dramatically improving lives throughout the greater Hancock County community by collectively funding significant grants to charitable projects. The giving circle is open to all area women. Each year, every dollar generated by HTH memberships is passed directly on to the community through grants voted on by the members. A $500 annual donation gives each member a single vote as to how the pooled funds will be awarded that year; group memberships of 2-5 women are also available. This year, 141 local women were members of HTH, totaling 75 memberships.

The women’s giving circle is supported by the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation. HTH is currently accepting memberships for 2012-2013. To join or for more information regarding HTH please contact the Community Foundation at 419-425-1100 or visit their website at www.community-foundation.com.

The board also ratified the following grants from 2011: 37 donor advised grants totaling $147,361 and one designated grant of $1,320.97.

COMPETITIVE GRANTS
Competitive grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations that seek to meet community needs and match the goals, objectives, and priorities of the Community Foundation. Grantseekers must submit a written grant proposal for consideration. Applications are reviewed four times per year.

Funding for competitive grants comes from unrestricted and field of interest funds established by donors at the Community Foundation. Unrestricted funds allow the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees to direct the funds where they are most needed. Field of interest funds are granted in the donor’s chosen area of interest, such as health, education, or the arts.

The following seven competitive grants totaling $149,038 were approved by the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees at their February meeting.

Findlay-Hancock County Public Library
The Findlay-Hancock County Public Library was awarded a one-year grant totaling $2,956 for the creation and installation of a large 8 foot by 16 foot mural to be placed immediately inside the library’s front door on a currently unadorned brick wall. The placement of the mural will coincide with Findlay’s Bicentennial Celebration. The mural will use archived photographs to illustrate a collage of the history of Main Street in downtown Findlay. The library’s glass atrium and track lighting will allow the mural to be visible 24 hours a day in a striking visual display.

Flag City Honor Flight
Flag City Honor Flight was awarded a six-month grant totaling up to $25,900 to partially support a local Honor Flight to send up to 78 Hancock County veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit the memorials dedicated to honor their service.  Funding will be provided at $300 per Hancock County veteran who completes the flight.

Hancock Park District
The Hancock Park District was awarded a one-year grant totaling $21,731 to complete a Trails Master Plan.  This project includes a three-phase planning process. Phase 1: Create an overall Master Plan of potential trail routing throughout the City of Findlay. Phase 2: Create a schematic design to serve as a base map of Findlay and its adjacent area, utilizing the latest aerial photography, GIS and other AutoCAD information, and identify/locate well known landmarks to begin the process. Phase 3: Design development will represent work necessary to complete one segment of trail design, including complete scope and thorough construction estimate which will be reviewed by Hancock Park District personnel and other decision makers to arrive at a final solution.

Literacy Coalition of Hancock County
The Literacy Coalition of Hancock County was awarded a one-year grant totaling $8,625 to host a Literacy Summit that will help to develop a framework to establish focused priorities and outcomes to improve literacy in Hancock County.  The Summit will be a focused and intentional gathering of Hancock County individuals from across the literacy spectrum.  Participants will include representatives from pre-school readiness, city, county and private schools, public and private universities, adult literacy programs, workforce development, businesses, and interested community members.  The fiscal agent for this project is the United Way of Hancock County.

Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Services
Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Services was awarded a two-year grant totaling $16,836 to support a part-time children’s Coordinator for the Harmony House program. This team member will provide an orientation for the children prior to their first visitation or exchange to complete an intake and welcome process.  Over the last year, Open Arms has seen an increase of nearly 100 additional visits and 100 more children using Harmony House services.  In assessing its client service delivery and comparing it to best practices, Open Arms has determined that it is lacking in the amount of time to best support children, its most vulnerable clients.

Special Kids Therapy, Inc.
Special Kids Therapy, Inc was awarded a three-year grant totaling $65,000 to partially support the position of Executive Director. Besides the Out of the Box program, Special Kids Therapy has operated as an all-volunteer organization since its founding in 2001.  With the recent growth and change that has taken place within the organization, the next level of organizational growth will be obtained through a paid, professional Executive Director who can lead Special Kids Therapy, Inc. to the next level of providing services to the special needs community.

Women’s Resource Center of Hancock County
Women’s Resource Center of Hancock County was awarded a one-year grant totaling $7,990 to support strategic planning and follow-up coaching appointments for board and staff with Dr. Sidney Webb of Sharpened Focus. The project will build on the capacity building that Women’s Resource Center has done since 2009 through the “Standards for Excellence” training from the Ohio Association of Nonprofit Organizations and previous consulting work with Dr. Webb.

AGENCY & DESIGNATED GRANTS
Designated grants are awarded from charitable funds established to support a specific nonprofit organization. Fund establishers may have specified how those funds were to be used by the organization, or funds may be awarded for general support. The following 44 designated grants totaling $197,010 were approved by the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

• Arlington School Foundation, $880 to provide support for 2012 of enhancement of the classroom experience and improve the effectiveness of the curriculum for the Arlington Local School District
• Arts Partnership of Greater Hancock County, $14,319 general support
• Black Heritage Library and Multicultural Center, $637 general support
• Blanchard Valley Center, $20,589 support, care, repair and maintenance of the resident facilities
• Blanchard Valley Health Foundation, $8,796 general support
• Boy Scouts of America, Black Swamp Area Council, $915 general support of the Camp, $880 general support of the Council, and $88 support of Camp scholarships
• Cancer Patient Services, $1,945 general support
• CASA/GAL of Hancock County dba Voices for Children, $3,794 general support
• Century Health Family Services, $2,937 general support
• City Mission of Findlay, Ohio, $1,217 general support and $485 capital support
• Findlay Art League, $148 support operating costs associated with student art exhibits and $441 general support
• Findlay City School District, $19,617 for use and benefit of the New Opportunities for Work Project (Project NOW) and $2,563 financial support during 2012 for Findlay City School (FCS) staff to pursue innovative program ideas that directly impact student learning
• Findlay Enrichment Program, $355 general support
• Findlay-Hancock County Chamber Foundation, $803 support of Hancock Youth Leadership
• Findlay-Hancock County Public Library, $435 general support of the genealogy department
• Findlay Hope House for the Homeless, Inc., $1,064 general support and $3,209 general support
• First Lutheran Church, $8,777 support of Lutheran charities
• First Presbyterian Church, $4,284 general support
• Hancock Christian Clearing House, $904 general support, $359 general support, and $1,943 general support
• Hancock County Agricultural Society, $2,359 to perpetuate the activities and to sustain the Hancock County Fairgrounds and predominately for the benefit of the Junior Fair activities in Hancock County
• Hancock Parks Foundation, $1,167 support of construction and maintenance of bicycle paths/trails in Hancock county, bicycle safety and bicycling recreation programs and $2,102 support of parks and recreation program and projects in Hancock County
• Humane Society of Hancock County, $3,031 general support
• Marilyn and Gordon Macklin Intergenerational Institute, Inc., $5,055 general support
• Mazza Enthusiasts, $1,400 general support
• Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Center, $6,054 general support
• St. John’s Lutheran Church, $1,863 for quarterly grounds upkeep
• United Way of Hancock County, $43,774 general support and $1,729 general support, and $3,815 agency support
• University of Findlay, $9,657 general support and $1,244 general and scholarship support
• Winebrenner Theological Seminary, $1,512 general support
• Young Men’s Christian Association/Findlay, $8,845 general support
• ECLIPSe, $803 to provide an incentive for youth fundraising activities, excluding solicitation activities, and serve as a match for dollars raised by the youth for grantmaking
• Handbags that Help Giving Circle, $216 provide additional grantmaking dollars

The following grants were approved and distributed in 2011 and ratified at the February 2012 board meeting.

DONOR ADVISED GRANTS – 37 grants totaling $147,361

• American Red Cross, Hancock County Chapter, general support, $250
• Blanchard Valley Health Foundation, support of Bridge Home Health Hospice, $250 and purchase of 200 copies of “Your Breast Cancer Treatment Handbook” for newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, $3,590
• Caughman Health Center, prenatal education and well-baby incentives, $671
• Cancer Patient Services , general support, $250
• Century Health, general support, $250
• CHOPIN Hall, general support, $500
• CHOPIN Hall Fund of TCF, Initial endowment support for fund establishment, $20,000
• City Mission of Findlay, Ohio, general support, $1,000
• City Mission of Findlay, Ohio Fund of TCF, endowment support, $10,000
• Clothe-A-Child, general support  , $400
• Findlay Area Youth for Christ, general support, $5,000
• Findlay-Hancock County Public Library, purchase of 180 books for Early literacy Collection, $2,700
• Findlay Hope House for the Homeless, Inc., general support, $500 and $250
• Hancock Christian Clearing House, general support, $1,000
• Hancock County Agency on Aging, Senior Center capital campaign support, $1,000
• Hancock Historical Museum Association, general support, $250 and capital campaign support, $27,781 and $22,219
• Humane Society & SPCA of Hancock County, general support, $500
• Mazza Enthusiasts Fund of TCF, endowment support, $12,000
• The Nature Conservancy, general support, $500
• Nature Conservancy, Ohio Field Office, general support, $500
• Ohio State University Foundation, general support University Fund, $1,000
• Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Center, general support, $500 and $250
• Open Arms Domestic Violence and Rape Crisis Center Fund of TCF, endowment support, $10,000
• Salvation Army, general support, $1,000
• St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, general support, $1,000
• University of Findlay, Mazza Museum, Annual Fund, $250 and Younger endowment support, $10,000
• University of Findlay, Jerry J. Mallett Institute Endowment, $10,000
• United Way of Hancock County, general support, $500 and $1,000
• WBGU-TV Public Television, general support, $250
• WGTE Public Broadcasting, general support, $250

DESIGNATED GRANT
Macklin Intergenerational Institute, support of tuition scholarship program, $1,320.97.

This fund was established as a result of the Argyle Apartment fire that left 20 families homeless on February 23, 2012. After the fire, it was apparent that safe and affordable housing is not available for low-income families and individuals in our community.

“To help address the needs within our community for housing for low-income families that has been further impacted by the Argyle building fire, Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) is committing to match up to $35,000 by establishing a donor-advised fund. The fund will be administered by the Community Foundation,” stated Rod Nichols, vice president Human Resources and Administrative Services. “The funds will be utilized to evaluate the needs within our community and to provide solutions to help ensure that housing is available.  This is a problem that can be addressed with the support of businesses and individuals.  In creating this fund, MPC is challenging everyone to be part of the housing solution.”

Please contact the Community Foundation to participate in this challenge by donating to the fund. Donations to the Argyle fund can be mailed to the Community Foundation, 101 W. Sandusky St, Suite 207, Findlay OH 45840.

For more information about this fund please call 419-425-1100.

On February 23, 2012, an early morning fire destroyed the Argyle Apartments located at 532 South Main Street in Findlay. Current best estimates believe that 20 families consisting of 38 individuals were housed at the Argyle at the time of the fire.

The $25,000 Community Foundation grant will provide Findlay Hope House with the necessary resources to support the relocation of the victims from the February 23, 2012 downtown Findlay (Argyle apartment) fire.  The funds will be disbursed as follows:  $12,500 immediately, with the remaining funds to be disbursed based on reporting provided by Hope House that details how funds have been used and what remaining unmet needs are. The funds will be used for the following needs: first month rent, rent deposit, utility deposits, costs necessary to recreate forms of identification, very basic furniture needs, HATS vouchers, prescriptions, and minimal clothing and food needs.

“This grant is about emergency assistance for our most vulnerable neighbors,” said Katherine Kreuchauf, president. The overarching issue that has been highlighted through this disaster is the lack of affordable, safe housing for our most at-risk neighbors “With this fire, Findlay has lost an important link in the housing chain – housing for very low income individuals and families. “

For more information about this grant please contact Katherine Kreuchauf at 419-425-1100.

HANCOCK EDUCATION FUND GRANTS
Applications for the Hancock Education Fund grant program are due Friday, March 2. The Hancock Education Fund is a cooperative grant program established in 2001 between the Community Foundation, Findlay Rotary, and Findlay Rotary’s Golden Apple Teachers. The fund provides grant dollars to promote classroom learning and to provide Hancock County teachers with resources that encourage learning activities. Grantseekers are asked to focus on “21st Century Learning” skills such as cultural awareness and diversity, creative thinking, technological savvy, and interpersonal communication skills. Education experts believe these are the skills necessary to prepare our students for success in a global economy.

HANCOCK READS GRANTS
Applications for the HancockREADS grant program are due Friday, April 6. HancockREADS, founded in 2001, is an initiative of the Community Foundation designed to ensure that individuals and families in Hancock County enjoy the benefits of literacy. Many individuals in Hancock County have difficulty reading, writing, or using basic math skills necessary in everyday life. The mission of HancockREADS is to ensure that these individuals can find the help they need to become successful, and to ensure the current and future success of our children.

COMPETITIVE GRANTS
Letters of intent for the next competitive grant cycle are due Friday, April 6. If approved, full proposals will be due Friday, June 1. Board decisions for this grant cycle will be made in September. Competitive grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations that seek to meet community needs and match the goals, objectives, and priorities of the Community Foundation. Grantseekers must submit a written grant proposal for consideration. Competitive grant applications are reviewed four times per year.

Effective this year, the Community Foundation made changes to the competitive grant application process. Two meetings were held late last year for local nonprofit organizations that may be interested in applying for a competitive grant. All documents and forms have been updated on the Community Foundation’s website to reflect these changes. Additional information and application forms for these and other grant programs are available at www.community-foundation.com. If you have questions regarding Community Foundation grants or deadlines, please contact Julie Brown or Kimberly Bash at 419-425-1100.

Tickets for this event are $5 each and can be purchased in person, by mail or by phone at the Arts Partnership box office, 618 S. Main Street, and at The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation, 101 W. Sandusky Street, Suite 207. Tickets are also available at DorAnne’s Gift & Gourmet, Friends of the Library Book Cellar, George House Coffee & Tea, Mazza Museum, Mother Hubbard’s Learning Cupboard, Readmore’s Hallmark, and Common Grounds Coffeehouse & Cafe (Bluffton).  Tickets will also be available at the door.

The focus of this year’s CommunityREAD event is to encourage discussions regarding Alzheimer’s disease and its impact on relationships and careers. Certainly Alzheimer’s brings conflict and suffering. But Still Alice, in the end, is about a woman who is more than just her disease. She is still Alice. The CommunityREAD event also highlights the HancockREADS mission to promote the benefits of literacy in Hancock County.

Many activities are planned for CommunityREAD.  Members of the Hancock County community and surrounding communities are invited to participate in all CommunityREAD events during February and March.  Details of book discussion groups and other events are available online at www.community-foundation.com.

For more information about CommunityREAD please visit www.community-foundation.com or call Lisa Houck at 419-425-1100.

About “Still Alice”
Still Alice is a compelling debut novel, written by author Lisa Genova, about a 50-year-old woman’s sudden descent into early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Alice is a psychology professor at Harvard when she starts experiencing moments of forgetting and confusion. She at first attributes these signs to normal aging, too much stress, not enough sleep, and so on. But as things get worse, she eventually sees a neurologist and learns that she has early-onset Alzheimer’s. As Alice loses her ability to rely on her own thoughts and memories and as she loses her cerebral life at Harvard where she’d placed all her worth and identity, she is forced to answer questions like “Who am I now?” and “How do I matter?” As the disease worsens and continues to steal pieces of what she’d always thought of as herself, we see her discover that she is more than what she can remember.

Lisa Genova graduated valedictorian from Bates College with a degree in Biopsychology and has a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Harvard University. She is the author of the New York Times best-selling novels Still Alice and Left Neglected. Lisa is currently writing her third novel, Love Anthony, about a boy with autism. She lives with her family on Cape Cod.

COMPETITIVE GRANTS
Competitive grants are awarded to nonprofit organizations that seek to meet community needs and match the goals, objectives, and priorities of the Community Foundation. Grantseekers must submit a written grant proposal for consideration. Applications are reviewed four times per year.

Funding for competitive grants comes from unrestricted and field of interest funds established by donors at the Community Foundation. Unrestricted funds allow the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees to direct the funds where they are most needed. Field of interest funds are granted in the donor’s chosen area of interest, such as health, education, or the arts.

The following competitive grant totaling $19,000 was approved by the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees at their January meeting.

Hancock Christian Clearing House
Hancock Christian Clearing House was awarded a one-year grant totaling $19,000 to support an in depth strategic planning process.

PRESIDENT’S DISCRETIONARY GRANTS

• Artful EDUtainment was awarded a one-year grant totaling $500 to provide support for its Evening of Expression event that was held on January 25, 2012.
• Camp Fire USA Northwest Ohio Council was awarded a one-year grant totaling $1,000 to support its Incredible Kid Day and On Behalf of Youth Award.
• The Findlay-Hancock County Public Library was awarded a one-year grant totaling $1,895 to provide a one-year subscription to Foundation Directory Online.
• The Hancock Historical Foundation was awarded a one-year grant totaling $1,200 to provide copies of the recently published Findlay history books to 23 area schools and public libraries.
• The Hancock Parks Foundation was awarded a one-year grant totaling $1,200 to support costs of the 2012 Riverside Park Summer Concert Series. The Summer Concert Series provides free concerts to over 7,000 Hancock County residents.
• The Arts Partnership of Greater Hancock County was awarded a one-year grant totaling $1,500 to expose children at three area elementary schools (Washington, Chamberlin, Lincoln) to vocal art through an Opera on Wheels performance.
• The Arts Partnership of Greater Hancock County was awarded a one-year grant totaling $2,500 to provide access to free downtown music through the Courtyard Concert Series.

The Foundation currently has 100 scholarship funds that are available to current graduating seniors and current college students. Information about each scholarship and the standards for determining eligibility of students can be found through the Foundation’s website. Students have the opportunity to start an application, save it and finish it at a later time but the application must be completed by April 1.  The student will only need to submit one application to be considered for scholarships at the Community Foundation.

Visit www.community-foundation.com to apply or learn more about the scholarships available at the Foundation. For more information or questions, contact Shelly Joseph at the Community Foundation at 419-425-1100.

“Having FDO available in Findlay is an especially valuable resource for our community, with the potential to help bring in additional funding for local organizations and programs. Previously, the closest access points for this database were in Lima and Toledo,” said Community Foundation President, Kathy Kreuchauf.

The FDO database is updated continually and provides the most accurate details available on nearly 100,000 foundations, corporate giving programs, and grantmaking public charities in the U.S.: a database of over 4,000 sponsoring companies, offering a quick pathway to corporate funders; a database of over 2.4 million recently awarded grants, and a keyword-searchable database of over 700,000 recently filed IRS Forms 990 and 990-PF.

The online database is maintained by the Foundation Center, a national nonprofit service organization recognized as the nation’s leading authority on organized philanthropy, connecting nonprofits and the grantmakers supporting them to tools they can use and information they can trust. The Center maintains the most comprehensive database on U.S. grantmakers and their grants.

The Community Foundation Board of Trustees funded FDO through a president’s discretionary grant.