The United Way of Jefferson and North Walworth Counties has announced it will be opening its annual pillar grant funding application on Monday, April 4 at 9 a.m. The application will remain open until Friday, May 20, at 5 p.m. Decisions about awards will be announced by June 15.
“Our United Way is always excited to kick off our pillar grant season each year. Since launching our pillar grants in 2014, we have allocated a total of $112,013 in pillar grant funding to 56 different community projects and programs, and we are eager to continue that support throughout 2022. Our pillar grants have been a very successful program for our United Way, allowing us to develop new partnerships, increase our community awareness, and become involved in new programs/initiatives that align with our mission and community impact. We’ve updated our pillar grant timeline this year a bit, to allow for more promotion of the funding opportunity and additional time for grant applications to be submitted. We know that almost everyone in our communities is dealing with staffing changes and shortages, and increased workloads, so we wanted to provide a timeframe this year that was cognizant of those issues and will hopefully allow more applicants to submit proposals,” United Way Executive Director Megan Hartwick was quoted as saying in a recent news release.
According to the release, pillar grants offer a unique opportunity that differentiates from traditional nonprofit agency grants provided by United Way. The difference is that applicants do not have to be nonprofit organizations to be eligible for funding, although nonprofits are still able and encouraged to apply.
Consideration is open to all community members, organizations/groups, schools, etc. that may have a great community project idea or an existing program for which they need additional funding, the release stated.
The main requirement for pillar grant consideration is that the project must be aimed at improving the health, education and/or financial stability of the communities which United Way of Jefferson and North Walworth Counties supports, The area includes all of Jefferson County and the city of Whitewater, the release noted.
Specifically, all applications must focus on at least one of United Way’s three strategic impact areas: early intervention care, mental health/alcohol and other drug addiction (AODA), barriers to self-sufficiency, and/or diversity, equity and inclusion. Also, to ensure proper use of grant funds, pillar grant payments are made on a reimbursement basis after the receipt of paid invoices or on a direct invoice basis, the release continued.
Said Hartwick: “It was important to our board of directors that our pillar grant funding aligns closely with the main issues facing our communities, so three years ago we transitioned our pillar grant funding slightly to focus on these four strategic impact areas. The focus on early intervention care, mental health/AODA, barriers to self-sufficiency, and diversity, equity and inclusion comes from direct community feedback, 211 call data, countywide data and input our partners provide regarding their clients’ major needs.”
A total of $11,000 is currently set aside to support pillar grant proposals.
According to Hartwick, the amount available may increase prior to the June 15 decision-making date. The United Way board of directors has full discretion to allocate some, all or none of the funding.
Within the release, examples of past recipients of pillar grant funding were provided. They are: mobile railyard equipment through Fort Healthcare; scholarships for local children to participate in the Working for Whitewater’s Wellness Fit Kid Shuffle; improvements/additions to school and community gardens; Parents Cafes for Jefferson County Head Start; KIND News publication through the Humane Society of Jefferson County; a handicap accessible fishing pier at the Rivers Edge Nature Preserve, Women Who Care school-based behavioral health and school nurse training programs, the Whitewater Little Free Pantry, Recovery Support Center recovery coach training, Bethel House financial literacy curriculum development, a zen den at Fort Atkinson Preschool and Childcare, an opiate awareness toolkit through the Jefferson County Drug Free Coalition, Dolly Parton Imagination Libraries, among others. A full list of the 56 past pillar grant supported projects/programs can be viewed here: https://uwjnwc.com/who-we-help/pillar-grant-projects/.
A copy of the 2022 guidelines and application can be found on the United Way website at www.uwjnwc.com. All pillar grant applications must be completed online, and log-in details can be obtained from the United Way office at 920.563.8880 or unitedway@idcnet.com.
About the United Way of Jefferson and North Walworth Counties
The United Way of Jefferson and North Walworth Counties’ mission is to fight for the health, education and financial stability of every person within the communities it serves. The mission is fulfilled by providing support to community programs, projects and local agencies that provide critical health and human services to those in need. The network of services can be described as a “safety net” for those in need. Whether it is transitional housing, literacy education, after-school programs and education, health and dental care, end of life care, mentoring programs, job training or disaster relief, the United Way identifies the greatest needs in the community and helps to fund agencies that can meet those needs.
For more information about the local chapter of the United Way, visit the website at www.uwjnwc.com. For details regarding the United Way’s online volunteer tool, visit www.volunteermain.com.
File photo/public domain.
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