Photo by Sabrina L. Green Photography, courtesy of Clothes to Kids of Haywood County.
(March 2024) – The Fund for Haywood County with the J. Aaron and Adora H. Prevost Endowment Fund and the Mib and Phil Medford Endowment Fund awarded fourteen grants totaling $80,700 in a recent grant cycle. Since 1994, The Fund for Haywood County, in partnership with The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina (CFWNC), has awarded grants totaling $1,408,366.
“Through its grant program, The Fund for Haywood County supports local nonprofits doing work in our community,” said Advisory Board Chair Adam Bridges. “Building an endowment for Haywood County has allowed us to give back to organizations that provide critical services and improve the quality of life for everyone who lives here. We hope that we can fund more programs with more dollars each year, which is why we continue to grow the Fund. We are grateful to our friends and neighbors who support us in these efforts.”
The 2024 grants are:
$5,000 to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Western North Carolina to support mentoring pairs and to initiate a High School Bigs Program.
$3,000 to Children's Cancer Partners of the Carolinas to provide access to cancer treatment for Haywood County children.
$3,000 to Clothes To Kids of Haywood County for operating support for its free clothing shop.
$5,000 to The Community Kitchen to purchase food and supplies needed to provide fresh, hot meals nightly and for its Food Distribution Program.
$7,500 to Haywood County Meals on Wheels to purchase shelf-stable meal boxes for each recipient of its program.
$5,000 to Haywood Pathways Center to support its new part-time Family Case Manager.
$7,500 to KARE (Kids Advocacy Resource Effort) to provide services for children and families who have experienced abuse.
$18,000 to Kiwanis Club of Waynesville Charitable Corp (from the Mib and Phil Medford Endowment Fund) for an East Street Park Improvement Project in Waynesville’s oldest neighborhood park.
$3,000 to Meridian Behavioral Health Services to provide support packages for clients of its Recovery Education Centers.
$7,500 to Mountain Projects to support its senior nutrition program.
$5,000 to NC International Folk Festival toward the cost of replacing its HVAC system.
$7,200 to Pigeon Community Multicultural Development Center to support a new part-time position for its Summer Enrichment Program.
$4,000 to Special Olympics North Carolina to support the cost of local Special Olympics programming.
In 1994, local residents established The Fund for Haywood County as a permanent charitable endowment to meet local needs. Gifts added to the Fund’s principal are preserved and invested, while grants from the Fund support nonprofits in Haywood County. To make a tax-deductible contribution, donate online or by mail c/o CFWNC, 4 Vanderbilt Park Drive, Suite 300, Asheville NC 28803. Make checks payable to CFWNC, noting “The Fund for Haywood County” in the memo line. Contributions of any size are welcome.
The local, volunteer Advisory Board includes: Angela Bleckley, Adam Bridges (Chair), Kim Ferguson, Jeff Haynes (Vice Chair), Susan Hooper, Joan Kennedy, Chris Kuhlman, Jeff Lee, Terri Manning, Steve McNeil, Kristina Proctor, Jonathan Song, Amy C. Spivey, Mathew Underwood, and Eric Yarrington.
For more information about The Fund for Haywood County, please contact Advisory Board Chair Adam Bridges at 828-400-1156.