Photo courtesy of The SPARC Foundation.
(July 2022) – Six nonprofits serving Western North Carolina will receive $1,078,950 over three years from the Melvin R. Lane Fund supporting human service organizations in improving operations, increasing capacity, and becoming more collaborative and sustainable to better the lives of Western North Carolina’s citizens.
The grants are:
$178,950 over three years to Center for Domestic Peace for a Grants and Financial Administrator to support government grant processes and allow the Executive Director to focus on developing community partnerships and improving programs.
$180,000 over three years to Children & Family Resource Center to hire an Outreach Director who will help expand program capacity and engage a fundraising consultant to assist in developing a long-term fundraising plan.
$180,000 over three years to The Family Place of Transylvania County to hire staff to improve program facilitation and technological capabilities, allowing leadership to focus on community outreach and collaboration.
$180,000 over three years to HIGHTS to support a dedicated Chief Financial Officer position and to restructure and strengthen its leadership model to stabilize management practices.
$180,000 over three years to McDowell Mission Ministries to hire a Development Director, improve board governance, and implement a strategic plan to improve organizational capacity and management.
$180,000 over three years to The SPARC Foundation to hire an Operations Director to manage the day-to-day business, allowing the Executive Director to focus on enhancement and growth and building relationships with new partners and potential funders.
“As children, families and individual community members experience increased needs for recovery and healing services, demand for SPARC services have grown,” said The SPARC Foundation Executive Director Jackie Latek. “In order to keep pace, provide quality programming and innovate, we will utilize Lane funds to hire an Operations Director responsible for managing existing and new programs. To achieve sustainable growth, a comprehensive strategic planning process will occur this year that will lead us confidently into the future. These capacity-building possibilities through the Lane grant are rare, yet critical, to the health of nonprofits, and we are grateful to the Lane committee and CFWNC.”
These three-year grants are made possible through a trust, created by Melvin and Georgianna Lane, longtime residents of Henderson County. Lyn Fozzard, daughter of Melvin R. Lane, created the Melvin R. Lane Fund at CFWNC in 2000. Her son, Peter Fozzard, oversees the Fund and manages it with his brother, Richard, wife Libby and members of the Lane Advisory Board. The Lane Fund grant program builds capacity and improves operations so that human service nonprofits can help more people. This is important and necessary work, and CFWNC is honored to support the Lane family in carrying on this legacy.