Willmar Area Community Foundation Opens Grant Round

The Willmar Area Community Foundation (WACF) announced today the opening of their annual grant round. The WACF seeks to fund programs that focus on three different areas this year: addressing the achievement gap for youth, increasing community connections and welcoming diverse populations, and supporting productive aging.  Eligible organizations must be a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, school, or government entity who serve residents of Kandiyohi County. The WACF General Grant Round will be open for applications from November 15th, 2019 to January 15th, 2020.  For additional information and the online application, visit www.communitygiving.org/grants and select "WACF General Grants".

The Foundation continues their work to target projects and programs that support the ‘Opportunity Gap’ movement. The ‘Opportunity Gap’ refers to the vast and growing differences in opportunities available to children and families nationwide described by Dr. Robert Putnam in his bestselling book “Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis.”

Sara Carlson, Executive Director of the Willmar Area Community Foundation stated, "With the opening of our grant round, we are excited for the new opportunities and programs that community organizations develop that make our communities vibrant and vital places today and for generations to come. The Foundation is looking to deepen our commitment to addressing the ‘Opportunity Gap’ for all our kids. We look forward to what our community partners can fuel, create and implement in the years to come so that no matter where a child lives, what their family income was, or what their ethnicity was, the children would have an equal opportunity to reach their full potential.”

Last year, the WACF grants supported the development of a new child care facility addressing the child care disparity to the City of Spicer for the YMCA Spicer Early Learning Center; provided capital investments to Kandi Works Developmental Achievement Center for renovation of their facilities to non-vocational activity programming and facility improvements; and the introduction of the Cardinal Backpack Food Program, which will provide a weekend backpack to targeted Willmar Public Schools’ elementary students, filled with nutritious, nonperishable, child-friendly food items.

The Willmar Area Community Foundation (WACF) attracts and administers charitable funds for the benefit of the local Willmar area.  Since 1998, WACF has grown to over $19.1 million in assets and awarded $8.8 million in grants to nonprofits.  The WACF is governed by a local board of directors and is a partner of CommunityGiving, which is a collaborative of community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors.  Collectively, CommunityGiving administers nearly 850 funds totaling more than $150 million. Learn more at CommunityGiving.org/Willmar.