It is hard to believe 2026 is half over, but I could not be more pleased at our mid-year progress. The Community Foundation has again hit a new milestone. Thanks to a generous grant opportunity from Lilly Endowment, we awarded $1,500,000 last month to nonprofits serving three of our county’s highest needs – childcare, affordable housing, and food insecurity\poverty relief efforts.
Nearly 30 years ago, Lilly Endowment provided seed funding that laid the groundwork for the creation of all community foundations across Indiana, and they continue to ensure our long-term success through their GIFT initiatives which are typically rolled out every few years. GIFT is an acronym for Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow. The current GIFT IX provided a community project grant option in addition to another matching grant providing $2 for every $1 donated to our unrestricted account, like GIFT VIII which we completed last year. Lilly Endowment doesn’t just give us the money; we must apply. As soon as that process opened I did just that, requesting grant funding for the community projects last November and the matching grant last week. This is the first time in Community Foundation’s 26-year history that Morgan County will be receiving $3 million dollars through a GIFT initiative!
Last month we opened a special grant cycle and received Letters of Intent from fourteen nonprofit organizations requesting project funding. Nine of those applicants advanced to interviews in front of our Board of Directors. Learning about these projects was exciting and most were collaborations with other nonprofits serving similar needs. As always, we are better together! So here are our winners.
Wellspring will purchase a house next to their existing facility to serve as transitional housing for the unhoused which is estimated to be 67 people within city limits. With new legislation criminalizing homelessness and 85 families countywide on Wellspring’s waitlist, this house will increase capacity to lift up our most vulnerable neighbors. With space for ten residents and a round-the-clock staff member, Wellspring will continue their mission to provide shelter and services for those in need with the goal of employment and independent living. This is exactly what they did from their lobby during the extreme weather last winter which I wrote about in February. Today, just 4 months later, seven of the ten men they bunked in the lobby are locally employed and living independently. Wellspring will close and take possession of the house June 19th. Way to go, Wellspring!
St. Martin of Tours Society of St. Vincent de Paul will now add $145,000 to their rental and utility assistance program. This important program keeps countless Morgan County families and individuals in their homes and helps keep the power on. With the ALICE population rising (acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed – the new way of identifying the working poor), St. Martin of Tours provides a vital program that helps so many in Morgan County.
Our board approved the cost of covenant-required upgrades for three homes to be built by Habitat for Humanity over the next 18 months in the newly approved Artesian Place, an affordable housing neighborhood including townhomes, six Habitat homes, and a childcare center. The board also approved the purchase of playground equipment for the childcare center which will serve 50 children with room for expansion. Both the childcare center and the playground will be open to the public. Construction begins next month.
Hall Civic Center is a historic landmark on the National Register of Historic Places, providing year-around childcare to 125 children and serving as a much-needed community center to the Monrovia community. Monrovian Randy Marsh has been fretting over this deteriorating roof, fearful it would force the building to close. Now, the concern of losing this important facility is over. Roof replacement will start next month.
The Morgan County Food Pantry Coalition and Pantry 279, a Bloomington organization serving Morgan County, were awarded $500,000 to create a network between pantries to share resources and reduce cost and to develop a delivery system to address the growing need of home-bound people with transportation challenges. We are confident this funding will be a game changer in addressing the hunger crisis across the county.
GIFT IX also has a matching grant. Lilly Endowment requires Morgan County to donate $750,000 and in turn, they will contribute $1.5 million to our unrestricted account (our grant making account.) Thanks to a few very generous donors, we only need another $269,000 to reach our goal! Whether addressing food insecurity, expanding childcare, improving housing opportunities, or responding to other emerging needs, your donation becomes a lasting investment in Morgan County, empowering our nonprofits to do their best work and ensuring that together we build a stronger, healthier, and more vibrant community for generations to come. Please help with this important work by making a gift today.
