Summit County rallies behind nonprofits this holiday season
Summit Foundation Grant Awards for Fall 2016
ARTS & CULTURE: $168,600 AWARDED
Breckenridge Backstage Theatre
Breckenridge Music Festival
Lake Dillon Theatre Company
National Repertory Orchestra
Summit Concert Band
Alpenglow Chamber Music Festivals
Summit County Arts Council
Summit Fine Arts for Youth
Summit Youth Orchestra
National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum
BRIGHT FUTURES: $468,700 AWARDED
After Prom Committee Summit High School
Beaver Ponds Environmental Education Center
Breckenridge Montessori
Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center
Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Denver – Summit County Child Care Community Outreach Specialist
Colorado Mountain College Foundation
Early Childhood Options
Easter Seals Colorado
Education Foundation of the Summit
Grand Beginnings
High Country Soccer Association
Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain
Keystone Science School
Lake Dillon Preschool
Park County Public Library
SOS Outreach
South Park Early Childhood Park County School District RE2
Summit County Mountain Mentors
Summit County Preschool
Summit Rugby
Summit School District-Preschool Program
The National Inventors Hall of Fame
The Peak School
Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts
YouthEntity
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP: $58,500 AWARDED
Colorado Mountain Club
Colorado Trail Foundation
Continental Divide Land Trust
Friends of the Dillon Ranger District
High Country Conservation Center
Mountain Area Land Trust
Vail Pass Task Force
HEALTHY AND SAFE COMMUNITIES: $386,500 AWARDED
Advocates for Victims of Assault
Advocates of Lake County
Bethany Immigration Services
CASA of the Continental Divide
Family & Intercultural Resource Center
Friends of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center
Horizons Specialized Services
Lake County Community Fund
Mind Springs Health
Mountain Family Center
Outdoor Mindset
Rocky Mountain Rural Health
South Park Seniors
Summit Community Care Clinic
Summit County Coroner’s Office
Summit Rotary Charitable Fund
Wounded Heroes Family Adventures
It’s the season of giving, and many Summit nonprofits have benefited from more than a million dollars worth of donations and grants.
The Summit Foundation represents one of the biggest donors in the county, having given out $25.9 million in grants since 1986. For 2016, the organization was able to give more out than in previous years to local nonprofits according to Elisabeth Lawrence, the foundation’s events and marketing manager.
“We continue to grow every year,” Lawrence said. “We did go over budget, which is a good thing.”
Applications for the fall giving cycle were due in mid-October, and the foundation subsequently distributed $1.08 million. The foundation focused on organizations helping working families and supporting school-age children.
Lawrence said that The Summit Foundation does its homework, reviewing applications and visiting the nonprofits that have applied. Generally, 80 percent get funded.
“We know that we’re doing our due diligence,” she said.
The Summit Foundation pairs with Vail Resort’s EpicPromise program, which helps to fund grants. This year, EpicPromise helped to support six grants for early childhood programs.
“It in turn supports their employees who have families here,” Lawrence said.
Across all of its resort properties, EpicPromise donated $7.6 million.
Locals supporting The Summit Foundation are in turn supporting the nonprofits that are given grants by the foundation. Colorado Gives Day was held on Dec. 6 and is the biggest day of giving in the state. Because of the $1 Million Incentive Fund, made possible by FirstBank and the Community First Foundation, every donation receives a portion of the funds to ensure that each registered nonprofit receives a boost.
Statewide, $33.8 million was raised on Colorado Gives Day. The Summit Foundation received $55,000 in donations, and the Family and Intercultural Resource center received more than $24,000.
The end of the year is important to FIRC, which helped to organize Adopt an Angel for the first time this year. The organization also works on the Summit County Cares fundraiser. This year, the goal is to raise $50,000 by New Year’s Eve. On Dec. 21, a special event was put together to raise $10,000. The fundraiser provides funds to workers in need of emergency assistance in Summit.
Anita Overmyer, the development director at FIRC, said that the organization was able to raise $2,500 from individual donations collected at City Market, an additional $2,500 from online donations as well as $5,000 from Ivan Stanley Fine Home Builders and Alpine Bank. As of Dec. 22, Summit County Cares was $15,000 away from its final goal.
For a full list of grants awarded by The Summit Foundation, visit summitdaily.com.
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