Grant awards issued

Local organizations have been awarded nearly $350,000 for a variety of projects.

The Portland Foundation announced this morning a total of $342,642 in project grants and $5,769.80 in teacher creativity mini grants for the first half of 2017.

“The gifts of countless Jay County citizens over the past 66 years allows The Portland Foundation to award these grants and to assist in improving the quality of life in the community,” said foundation executive director Doug Inman in a press release. “We are truly blessed to live in such a generous community.”

The largest of the project grants was $160,000 in a $1 to $1 match to the Jay County Fair Association for renovation of the grandstand at Jay County Fairgrounds.

John Jay Center for Learning was awarded a total of nearly $39,441 for its leadership academy, senior learning series, robotics camp and speaker series. Arts Place and Jay Community Center each received $35,000 for the MusicWorks and Boomer sports programs respectively, and Youth Service Bureau got a total of $11,000 for its Born to Learn and Keeping at Risk Students in School programs.

Grants of $5,000 or more also included: $10,000 to the Jay County Fourth of July Committee for its annual Fourth of July celebration; $7,000 to Jay County Special Olympics; $5,000 to Jay County Pee Wee Football; $5,000 to Dunkirk Glass Days Festival for glass blowing demonstrations; $5,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank for its new school pantry program.

Other grants were: a total of $4,356 to Jay County Historical Society for replacement of windows and doors as well as the purchase of canopies for the Heritage Festival; a total of $4,319 to West Jay Community Center for its senior citizen exercise program and the purchase of soccer goals and an equipment trailer; $4,226 to Jay County Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Services for the purchase of equipment.

Also, $4,000 to Jay-Randolph Developmental Services for water softeners; $3,000 to Jay County Music Foundation for its 2017 concert series; $2,100 to Dunkirk Beautification Committee for the Webster-Depot Park summer concert series; $2,000 to Jay County Development Corporation for strategic planning; $2,000 to Jay County Soil and Water Conservation District for educational field days; $2,000 to the Jay County unit of the Salvation Army for its emergency assistance program; $1,200 to Jay County Humane Society for electrical wiring at its shelter; and $1,000 to Agape Respite Care for its Summer Adventures in Learning.

The teacher mini grants, which are funded by the Virgil and Josephine Thomas Educational Fund, are $300 or less for learning experiences teachers feel are important but that are not part of the school budget. Those grants went to Westlawn Elementary teachers Carol Bantz, Kelly Bricker, Nicci Littler, LaVetha Loucks, Brenda Lykins, Christa Robinson, Sara Wolf and Jeff Davis; Jay County High School teachers Carol Gebert, Seth Swallow, Doug Tipton and Lori Reece; General Shanks Elementary teachers Dora Houck, Jennifer Wilson and Lindsey Peterson; Redkey Elementary teachers Kelly Bricker and LaVetha Loucks; Bloomfield Elementary teachers Amy Fullenkamp and Shaylee Myron; East Elementary teacher Brooke Schmiesing; and Jay Schools speech teacher Beth Mathewson.

The next grant application deadline is July 3 for project grants and July 10 for teacher mini grants.