The Patagonia Regional Community Fund (PRCF) recently announced its 2022 grants totaling $23,600 to seven area nonprofits. In addition, donations this year from the Burton Family Foundation and the Mar-Walt fund added to these funds for a total of $130,700. This is the first year these additional grants have been at such a substantial level.
The organizations receiving the funding offer local services that range from news and education to basic health needs and recreation. They are the following:
- Sky Island Tourism Association to help renovate the train caboose recently installed in Doc Mock Park which will be used for SITA’s relocated Welcome Center.
- Patagonia Youth Enrichment Center to support its Outdoor Food Forest project, whose garden bounty will be used in PYEC’s continuing cooking program with surplus going to local families.
- Patagonia Regional Times to support the development and operation of an interactive online activities calendar to better enable the PRT to keep local residents informed about what is going on in the community.
- Patagonia Pool to help it recruit, hire, train and certify lifeguards so that the pool may be kept open for the benefit of all users on a full-time basis during the summer season.
- Patagonia Creative Arts Association to help with the after-school Club Theater program for local students including providing instruments, instructors, costumes, theater props and related materials.
- Mat Bevel Company to help it develop learning objectives, standards, instructions, student activities and worksheets for Module 3: Electric Energy of its Universe Within STEM curriculum.
- Family Health Care Amigos to help purchase a truck with a lift for collecting used furniture and related accessories to sell in the Purple Elephant Thrift Shoppe, to deliver purchased items to customers, and to collect and deliver durable medical equipment and incontinence supplies.
Colleen Luliucci, Regional Philanthropic Advisor for the Arizona Community Foundation (ACF), said, “Community members make up the committee that reviews the grant requests. They have the best sense of community needs and what projects might really make an impact….We take into account how the application was written and much planning and forethought have been put into the request.”
The Burton Family Foundation is a support organization to the ACF. The Mar-Walt fund is a donor-advised fund. Jim Schatz, chair of the regional steering committee for Patagonia, explained that “around 75% of the monies held by the ACF come from donor-advised funds, where donors make specific requests that their donation goes to a particular nonprofit. The Foundation does extensive research and vetting of charities. It also handles investing the donor’s funds.” ACF is a 501c-3 charity.
Some of the additional funding provided by these two organizations allows for spending beyond the scope of the stated projects. Also included was money for the Patagonia Museum for its upcoming celebration of the completion of the Lochiel School renovation project.
“One of our roles is to connect nonprofits to other resources, financial and otherwise, and we were pleased to make the connections that led to the additional funding,” said Angie Laskarides, Regional Director of Program and Community Engagement, ACF.
To donate or apply for grant funding, contact info@azfoundation.org or call 602.381.1400.