Foundation distributes grants
Funding everything from high school underwater robotics competitions to the installation of catch basins, the Community Foundation of Fayette County is distributing more than $65,000 in grants to 26 local non-profit and charity-driven programs. The grants were awarded Tuesday night at the Uniontown Public Library during the foundation’s spring grant ceremony.
Executive Director Bob Wetzel said the foundation, composed of 15 board members, receives charitable donations from the community and then redistributes them to agencies and programs designed to better the community. Wetzel said the foundation has been working in the county for the past three years and has distributed more than $300,000, while operating on a small 2 percent take on all donations.
Wetzel said the foundation is happy to provide funding for such a menagerie of programs, and he said that without the generosity of area residents, the foundation would not exist and area charitable programs would suffer.
“These gifts aren’t possible without the gifts that preceded them,” Wetzel said. “Every grant we make to a worthwhile cause is the result of a contribution we received from a generous donor.”
Five area groups – Brownsville Area Revitalization Corp., East End Community Center, Fayette County Agricultural Improvement Association, the Adopt-a-Student program and the Private Industry Council – each received maximum grants of $5,000.
“We are bringing the American Wind Symphony Orchestra to Brownsville,” Norma Ryan, representative from the Brownsville Area Revitalization Corporation said. “They have been in Europe for five years and they will begin their tour in Brownsville.”
Ryan, one of many community leaders on hand to receive grants Tuesday, said the orchestra will perform June 4-9, and the first concert will be held on the Brownsville Wharf, along the Monongahela River and is free to the public.
Sitting near her, Sylvester Pace, representative from the Adopt-a-Student program, said the $5,000 his program received will be used to establish scholarships and grants for low-income and primarily black students in the area. He said the Negro Educational Emergency Drive (NEED), which operates through the Adopt-a-Student program, has been working in the county for years to provide educational opportunities for black students.
“What we would like to do with this money is adopt five area students, five top achievers who are interested in post-secondary education and work with them,” Pace said.
Wetzel also told the community leaders about a new program offered through the foundation in conjunction with Fayette County Commissioner Joe Hardy and Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa.
The program, the 84 Lumber Classic Charity Partnership Kickoff Program, will provide one complimentary ticket to the PGA golf tournament in mid-September for every donation of $10 before June 20.
An individual or company that donates $1,000 to the foundation will receive 100 tickets in return.
Wetzel said the ticket giveaway is a great opportunity to give back to the community and receive a small gift in return.