The nine nonprofits selected by the city are Choose2Love, Fairborn FISH, TCN Behavioral Health, United Church Homes, Fairborn Senior Citizens Association, Operation Fairborn Cares, Abiding Christ Lutheran Church, Miami Valley Military History Museum, and the Fairborn YMCA.
Fairborn City Manager Rob Anderson said, “We appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with Greene County through this process and are pleased to award ARPA grants to nine local nonprofits that will continue to serve the Fairborn community for years to come.”
** ORIGINAL STORY **
Greene County commissioners Thursday approved nearly $820,000 in nonprofit grants for 36 different organizations, which will have a positive “domino effect” on thousands of Greene County residents, commissioners said.
The vast majority of the $819,833 in grants were for $25,000, with some falling around the $10,000 mark.
“This was one of the most exciting things we need to do with these ARPA funds, to get that money out and have an impact on all those different groups and different people,” said commission President Tom Koogler.
Greene County dedicated up to $1 million of its American Rescue Plan Act funds to a nonprofit grant program in May, partnering with the city of Fairborn, which added an additional $500,000 to the funding pool.
Of the 63 applications received by the county, nine went to Fairborn, and 17 were rejected for being ARPA-ineligible. In addition to the 36 approved Thursday, Hope Hub, a Xenia-based nonprofit that helps women struggling with addiction, will be the 37th organization approved next week, with a grant for $25,000.
The program was administered by the Greene County Department of Development and consulting firm the GreenTree Group, which Greene County has contracted with on how to spend its coronavirus relief funds. “For some of these nonprofits, $25,000 is huge,” Commissioner Rick Perales said. “This is a one-time good deal and we want to support them.”
Kelsey Hurlburt, executive director of the Bellbrook Sugarcreek Community Support Center, said their money will be used to fund the Center’s food pantry, buying both food and other items like like laundry detergent, toilet paper, diapers, deodorant, or towels. Many of these items are not covered by food stamps.
The center also offers several life-skills classes, and a portion of the grant will fund a computer skills class where participants learn how to build resumes and cover letters, and how to apply for jobs online. A portion of the $25,000 will fund the class for the next three years, Hurlburt said.
“To know that we have that stability over the next two years, where I will be able to say to our food pantry manager, ‘you’ve got this much per quarter that you can spend on these items,’ that’s awesome,” she said.
Family Promise of Greene County will use the money to kickstart its Enhanced Stabilization Program, which provides better case management services to families and children experiencing homelessness, said board president Jeremy Wofford. Families who are displaced face a multitude of barriers that can hinder their goals of stabilization, and the program will allow FPGC to provide the support for a successful outcome, Wofford said.
“Our hope and mission at Family Promise of Greene County is that no family endures the trauma and long-term impact of homelessness. Family Promise would like to thank Greene County for it support of ARPA funds and all our supporting members,” Wofford said via email.
Greene County has slowly rolled out how it’s spending its total $33 million in federal coronavirus relief money. Earlier this year, commissioners approved $7.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars towards larger nonprofit projects and department upgrades. The county committed $9.6 million for expanding broadband internet and $10 million in “revenue replacement” for funds toward a new county jail. The county also spent $110,000 toward supplementing COVID contact tracing in schools, and $250,000 on consulting.
Grant recipients
$25,000 each — Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Chamber of Commerce, Yellow Springs Community Foundation, Eugene and Dorothy Kavanaugh Wildlife Farm, Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce, Fellowship Tabernacle Food Pantry, Greene County Community Fund/Owens Place, One Bistro, Xenia FISH, Xenia Area Community Theater, Jeremiah Tree, Ohio History Connection/National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center, Family Promise of Greene County, Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Community Support Center, Caesar’s Ford Theatre, SOS Ministry Mission Field - the Streets of America, Antioch College Corporation, Golden Age Senior Citizens, the Greene Foundation, Friends Health Care Association, Miami Valley Community Action Partnership, YMCA of Greater Dayton, Miami Valley Public Media, HerStory, Beavercreek Music Parents Association, Beavercreek Chamber of Commerce, Beaver Creek Wetlands Association, and Habitat for Humanity
$20,000 to $24,999 each — Greene Inc., Yellow Springs Art Council, Crayons to Classrooms, Maple Trace Cancer Alliance, American Legion Beavercreek Memorial Post 763
$8,000 to $12,000 each — Therapeutic Riding Institute, Yellow Springs Community Children’s Center, Communities Helping Each And Everyone Reach Success (CHEERS), Yellow Springs Senior Citizens
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