Michael Whalton, Author at Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation

September 21, 2018 By Michael Whalton

EWVCF is Officially an Impact Investor

Pictured left to right are City National Bank’s Keith Unger, EWVCF Past President Darlene Truman, NCIF CEO Marten Jenkins, NCIF Business Development Manager Hannah Vargason, and EWVCF VP and Investment Committee Co-Chair Bill White. These five joined David DeJarnett and me for the official document signing and transfer of funds on Thursday afternoon.

The Community Foundation loan to the Natural Capital Investment Fund (NCIF) was finalized yesterday afternoon thanks to the members of our Investment Committee who encouraged us to become involved with impact investing in our five county region. Our loan of $200,000 to NCIF is slightly less than 1% of our total assets and we hope this is just the beginning of a very successful partnership. If you aren’t familiar with NCIF and the great work they have been doing in Appalachia over the past 22 years, you should check them out at http://ncif.org.

This was truly a team effort and we are grateful to Marten Jenkins of NCIF and David DeJarnett of Bowles Rice for preparing the necessary documents, Keith Unger of City National Bank for managing the funds being used for the loan, our Past President Darlene Truman for supporting the idea we had to do something outside the box, and our Investment Committee Co-Chair Bill White who kept us moving in the right direction over the past year as we hammered out the details.

The $200,000 note pays EWVCF 3.5% interest annually and has a term of five years, so it is an excellent addition to the fixed income portion of our investment strategy. Perhaps even more exciting is the fact that NCIF will actually be lending the funds to small and micro businesses in the Eastern Panhandle counties of Berkeley, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, and Morgan.

This has been a wonderful week for the Community Foundation as we received a $195,000 gift from the estate of Nancy Needy to establish a scholarship fund in her name, and a $100,000 gift from a very generous couple who added the contribution to their donor advised fund. Plus, we awarded several grants to a variety of worthy nonprofit organizations.

To top it all off, Felicia spent the week vacationing out west with her husband Shawn. And, Amy has been celebrating her 30th anniversary with David by hiking the Cinque Terra in Italy!

Have a great weekend!

Regards,

Michael

September 17, 2018 By Michael Whalton

EWVCF Competitive Grant Applications Are Now Being Reviewed

Sixty-seven grants totaling more than $160,000 were awarded during the Community Foundation’s annual Nonprofit Partners Breakfast in March of 2018. A wide variety of nonprofit organizations including the Berkeley County BackPack program received funding. Applications for the 2019 competitive grant program are now being accepted.

Grant Applications Being Accepted Thru December 10

2019 EWVCF Competitive Grant Program

Deadline to Apply for the 2019 Competitive Grant Program is December 10, 2018. Simply CLICK HERE to download a grant application and guidelines that can used for any of the grant programs listed below.

Youth Grants – ($1,000 to $5,000)

Approximately $90,000 in Youth Grants will be awarded to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations serving Jefferson, Berkeley, and/or Morgan counties. Our Youth Grants fund educational, athletic, academic, social, civic, and community based programs serving children in the Eastern Panhandle. Several field of interest funds, including the Tom & Virginia Seely Children’s Fund, the C. Scott and Elizabeth C. Shade Youth Fund, and the Jane P. Snyder Youth Fund, underwrite these grants.

Frada Fine Berkeley County Education Grants – ($500 to $3,000)

Nonprofit organizations, pre-schools, and public schools serving Berkeley County are eligible to apply for a total of $20,000 in grants from the Frada Fine Berkeley Education Fund to support tutoring programs, help develop preparatory skills, assist mentoring programs, provide necessary nutrition to encourage learning, and fund small capital needs within the schools. Special thanks to BB&T Wealth for establishing this fund with the community foundation and for providing continued financial support.

Housing Action Fund Grants – ($500 to $2,000)

Nonprofit organizations that address homelessness and/or affordable housing with an emphasis on those serving high need populations and underserved regions of the tri-county area of Jefferson, Berkeley, and Morgan, will share $5,000 in EWVCF Housing Grants, which are supported by the Housing Action Fund that was created by Dan Ryan Builders in 2005.

Human Welfare Grants – ($500 to $2,500)

These majority of the funding for these grants comes from the Joan Roach Volunteer Fund for the Needy. This program supports Eastern Panhandle nonprofit organizations that provide assistance to sick, needy, dependent, neglected or disadvantaged persons. Approximately $7,000 will be awarded.

Healthcare Grants – ($2,500 to $10,000)

Nonprofit organizations serving Jefferson, Berkeley, and Morgan counties can apply for grants from the Eastern Panhandle CARE Fund to support healthcare programs that provide access to affordable, high-quality, patient-centered care, and empowerment through health education, and connection to community resources. A total of $25,000 is available in this grant program.

Jefferson County Historic Cemetery Grants – ($2,500 to $5,000)

Historic cemeteries in Jefferson County, interested in the maintenance, repair, restoration, preservation, and beautification of Civil War era graves and burial plots can apply for a total of more than $14,000 in grants from the Helen Parker Willard Fund.

DOWNLOAD THE COMPETITIVE GRANT APPLICATION HERE.

CALL 304-264-0353 WITH ANY QUESTIONS!

WE ARE HAPPY TO ASSIST YOU!

September 5, 2018 By Michael Whalton

Emeritus Council & Nonprofit Leaders Lunch

Just over $50,000 in grants were awarded by the Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation to nonprofit organizations and schools in the Eastern Panhandle during the third annual Emeritus Council & Nonprofit Leaders Lunch that was held at the Purple Iris in late August. Grants from the D. Scott and Linda Roach Fund, the Bill and Nancy White Charitable Fund, the McMillan Family Fund, the Berkeley County Industrial Park Development Fund, and the Solomon Fine Memorial Fund.

The largest grant awarded came as a complete surprise to the recipient. Thanks to the generosity of Legacy Society member Solomon Fine, an endowed fund was created in his Will that is awarding grants in excess of $15,000 every year. The award is presented to a nonprofit organization that has done exceptional work in Martinsburg-Berkeley County during the previous year. The recipient of the 2018 Solomon Fine Memorial Fund grant is the Shenandoah Women’s Center for their outstanding work protecting victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and human trafficking.

The Berkeley County Industrial Park Development Fund was created in 2009 by the Development board as all lands in its jurisdiction were developed and projects were completed. Annual distributions from the fund support economic development, job creation, workforce development, business recruitment and creation, and employability training initiatives. Seven grants were awarded from this fund in 2018:

$7,772 to Blue Ridge Community & Technical College for their JumpStart Scholarship Program for grade 12 students from Berkeley County.

$6,250 to Spring Mills High School for their Simulated Workplace Venture – Cardinal Catering Company.

$5,500 to Catholic Charities WV Migration and Refugee Services to train eight interns to serve the needs of our diverse community.

$4,690 to James Rumsey Technical Institute for their Civics Class Career Exploration and Personal Finance Program.

$2,000 to Faith Community Coalition for the Homeless for the Employment Action Team partner program with Immanuel’s House.

$2,000 to Family Resource Network of the Panhandle for their Soft Skills Training Program.

$2,000 to Horizon Goodwill Industries for the Get Onboard Job Readiness Program.

The Martinsburg Sunrise Rotary Foundation received a total of $2,000 in grants for their Read Berkeley Program that last year provided eight books and a backpack to each of 186 second graders in four Berkeley County elementary schools. The Sunrise Rotary Club hopes to double the number of students that receive books this school year.

An Outdoor Classroom at North Jefferson Elementary School will be built by volunteers from the Kiwanis Club of the Blue Ridge and Engineers Without Borders. Partial funding or $1,000 was awarded to help with the project. Walmart provided an additional grant for the project which is scheduled to be constructed in September.

Applications for the Community Foundation’s Mini Grants to Teachers are being accepted until October 19. The next Competitive Grant program which awards youth, education, healthcare, human welfare, housing, and historic cemetery grants goes live on the website in mid-October and applications may be submitted until December 5th of this year. Awards for these grant programs will be announced in February.

August 7, 2018 By Michael Whalton

Mini Grants to Teachers

The Need

More and more, teachers are faced with the challenge of keeping children interested and engaged with few resources beyond the basics. In its first two years, the Mini Grants to Teachers program awarded grants to fund classroom book sets, a giant abacus, Speed Stackers, Rekenreks, an Autism Cafe, K’NEX building sets, sheet music, Lego Mindstorm kits, pedometers, Apple TVs, pBone instruments, a projector, wood chisels, an alto flute, eBooks, a couple of robots, art supplies, a river tank system, digital cameras, calculators, graphic tablets, and much more. This year, Mini Grants will be awarded to teachers who have a burning desire to improve the classroom experience for their students, and the ability to inspire the members of our grants committee to support your efforts.

The objective is to encourage and support teachers who have great ideas that will enhance the learning experience for students. Mini grants can be used to purchase supplies and materials for special projects; provide resources for the classroom; and support projects and programs that are not covered by school budgets or other means.

All grant recipients are expected to report on the expenditure of grant funds and results of the supported project by the end of the school year (June 2019).

August 3, 2018 By Michael Whalton

TWO RIVERS GIVING CIRCLE HONORS DOUG PERKS

The Two Rivers Giving Circle has honored Jefferson County historian P. Douglas Perks with its 2018 Preservation Award.

The award recognizes Perks many years of support for historic preservation. It was presented during the Jefferson County Historical Society’s annual picnic, held August 1 at Fruit Hill Farm in Shepherdstown. Perks received a handcrafted platter made from local clay by award-winning potters Pam and Ren Parziale, of Sycamore Pottery in Leetown.

The accompanying photo shows Perks, center, with the following Giving Circle members, from left to right: Virginia Rowzie, of Charles Town; Eleanor Finn, of Shepherdstown; Jane Davis, of Berkeley Springs; and Dan Rowzie, also of Charles Town.

The Two Rivers Giving Circle is a donor-advised fund of the Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation. Since its inception in 2008, it has provided grants totaling more than $68,000 to Eastern Panhandle organizations engaged in historic preservation and natural resources conservation. It is one of the few grant makers in the region that focuses on these two fields.

Each year, the Giving Circle also recognizes an individual who has been a leader in one or both of these fields.

A retired social studies teacher who resides in Shepherdstown, Perks has been active for many years in promoting greater understanding and appreciation of Jefferson County history.

He currently is historian of the Jefferson County Museum and of Shepherdstown’s Elmwood Cemetery Association. He is also is a certified park guide at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, Vice President of the Harpers Ferry Park Association, and a member of the Historic Shepherdstown. Commission’s museum committee.

Perks was a founding member of the Charles Town Library Civil War Roundtable, and during the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War, from 2011-2016, he co-organized a series of seminars about developments in the County during the War years.

He worked closely with the Jefferson County Black History Preservation Society to preserve Charles Town’s Webb-Blessing House, one of the first structures in Jefferson County built by a free African American.

Perks is a frequent lecturer on the history of Jefferson County, a contributing author to the Magazine of the Jefferson County Historical Society, writes the column “Mr. Jefferson’s County” in the Jefferson County Historical Society newsletter, and writes the weekly column “History Matters” to the Spirit of Jefferson newspaper.

The West Virginia Division of Culture and History recognized him as one of the state’s “History Heroes” in 2017.

Individuals interested in joining or contributing to the Two Rivers Giving Circle should contact Michael Whalton, executive director of the Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation, at 304-264-0353 or [email protected]. The cost of membership is $500 annually. Contributions of any amount are welcomed.