(September 2025) The Highlands Community Fund awarded fourteen grants totaling $105,605 to local nonprofits in its recent grant cycle. The Fund, in partnership with The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina (CFWNC), has awarded 226 grants totaling $1,416,686. The Mildred Miller Fort Charitable Fund also supports grantmaking in Highlands.
“The Highlands Community Fund advisory board is honored to support these 14 organizations that enrich our community,” said Advisory Board Chair Colleen Kerrigan. “As a permanent charitable resource for Highlands, we are grateful for the enduring generosity of the donors who support the Highlands Community Fund, making grants like these possible.”
The 2025 grants are:
$2,000 to The Bascom to support art education programs.
$10,000 to Boys & Girls Club of the Plateau to provide intensive, individualized reading support to students with significant learning challenges.
$9,088 to Child Medical Collaborative for specialized medical evaluations and community education aimed at preventing and addressing child abuse.
$3,526 to Children's Cancer Partners of the Carolinas to support cancer treatment for children from the Highlands community.
$10,000 to Counseling Center of Highlands to provide outpatient counseling.
$9,087 to First Presbyterian Church of Highlands to provide free afterschool enrichment programs to children.
$10,000 to Gordon Center for Children to provide financial assistance to families and purchase supplies for its preschool programs.
$5,500 to Highlands Biological Foundation to provide interactive environmental education experiences.
$5,000 to Highlands Community Child Development Center to purchase child-sized furniture to comply with North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education regulations.
$5,500 to Performing Arts Center to purchase materials for its theater program.
$10,000 to Pisgah Legal Services to provide free civil legal assistance and advocacy to low-income Highlands and Macon County survivors of domestic violence and child abuse.
$10,000 to REACH of Macon County to provide services for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking in Highlands.
$10,000 to The International Friendship Center of Highlands to purchase food and support operations of its food pantry.
$5,904 to Western Carolina University for the Highlands Biological Station to support and expand an environmental education program for underserved schools and children.
In 1996, local residents established the Highlands Community Fund 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 serving the Highlands region. To make a tax-deductible contribution, donate online or by mail to Highlands Community Fund, 4 Vanderbilt Park Drive, Suite 300, Asheville NC, 28803. Checks should be made payable to CFWNC, noting Highlands Community Fund in the memo line. Contributions of any size are welcome.
The local volunteer Advisory Board works to raise awareness of the Highlands Community Fund and to build assets for the future. These advisory board members are: Colleen Kerrigan (Chair), George Manning (Vice Chair), Florence C. Holmes (Secretary), Lisa Armstrong, Anne D. Bailey, Cantey P. Callaway, Scott Carter, Gerry Doubleday, Cherry Hudgins, Libby Lanier, Donna Lathem, John Mitchener, Kelly Tandy, and Allison M. Tate.
CFWNC works with families, businesses and nonprofits to strengthen communities through the creation of charitable funds and strategic grantmaking. A permanent charitable resource, CFWNC manages over 1,300 funds and has facilitated more than $456 million in philanthropy since its founding in 1978. Learn more at cfwnc.org.
CFWNC supports the growth of its affiliate funds to extend the benefits of philanthropy across the region. For additional information about the Highlands Community Fund, visit HighlandsCommunityFund.org.