The Wood River Valley Women's Charitable Foundation will close its application period for 2008 grants on Thursday, Jan. 10. Wood River Valley organizations may apply for grants of $5,000 to $25,000.
The emphasis will be on agencies providing services for which funding would otherwise be unavailable. Projects for which funding can leverage other dollars are given special consideration, Grants Chairwoman Marcia Liebich said.
In 2007, the foundation awarded $91,000 in grants to seven Wood River Valley nonprofit organizations—the Council Circle Foundation, the Environmental Resource Center, La Alianza Hispanic Center, the local chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Sagebrush Equine Training Center for the Handicapped, Sun Valley Adaptive Sports Program and Wood River Fire and Rescue.
Applicants must first fill out a two-page form available on the group's Web site at wrwomen.org.
A committee will then select organizations to submit a full proposal, which will be due in mid-March. After reviewing the proposals and making site visits, the committee will present several recommendations to the foundation's membership. The membership will vote on the grant recipients next summer. Funds will be awarded in August.
The group expects to have a total of $60,000 or more available for grants in 2008. Categories for grants include social services, education, environment, health, cultural arts and recreation.
Financial administration is provided by the Idaho Community Foundation, a statewide public charity with almost $70 million in assets and more than 370 individual funds pooled together for efficient management.
The Wood River Valley Women's Charitable Foundation, formed in 2005, has more than 100 members who pledge to donate $1,000 a year. Members may give their entire contribution to the pooled community grants or designate $500 to charities of their choice anywhere in the United States.
For additional information, contact Liebich at 578-8004 or grants@wrwomen.org. Women interested in joining the group should contact info@wrwomen.org.
