The Payroll Department announces this year’s grant recipients for the Meet Your Match grant: Housing Solutions for the Southwest in support of the Community Emergency Assistance Coalition, Stillwater Music, and The Hive DGO.
The Payroll Department designates $21,000 in corporate giving to three La Plata County nonprofits with $7,000 matching grants. The business partners with the Community Foundation serving Southwest Colorado to manage the grant application process, with Payroll Department staff making the final grant selections. Each grant requires a dollar-for-dollar match of funds awarded, designed to spur additional support for local nonprofits. All three organizations will launch local fundraising efforts immediately to raise their matching funds.
“The Payroll Department provides the Meet Your Match grant opportunity as an incentive to inspire nonprofits as they seek new funding sources and nurture new donor relationships,” says Michael Hennon of the Payroll Department.
Housing Solutions for the Southwest is awarded a $7,000 matching grant to support the expansion of the Community Emergency Assistance Coalition (CEAC). CEAC is a collaborative multi-agency effort providing homeless prevention through one-time emergency financial assistance to locals experiencing an acute financial crisis. CEAC helps with financial emergencies such as housing payments, vehicle repairs, and utility bills. The coalition is administered through Housing Solutions and includes comprehensive housing counseling and connection to supportive services to address underlying issues that lead to the applicants’ housing insecurity. The Meet Your Match grant will help Housing Solutions develop and implement a more robust funding system to ensure CEAC will meet increased needs in the future.
“This opportunity will allow CEAC to team up with employers in our community to create sustainable funding for local employees to access emergency funding and HUD-certified financial counseling,” says Evelyn Gorsline-Flamm, programs director of Housing Solutions for the Southwest. “The outcome will provide a lifeline for people in crisis to maintain their housing, supporting a reliable local workforce.”
Stillwater Music is awarded a $7,000 matching grant with the goal to expand inclusive music and dance classes to all schools in Durango School District 9-R, serving approximately 260 school-age children. Inclusive classes bring together people with and without disabilities to create music and dance in a supportive and caring environment.
“Giving people with limitations the opportunity to join with and lead their peers in dance and music in whatever way they can is a key part of eliminating the social isolation that people with disabilities often experience,” says Jeroen van Tyn, executive director of Stillwater Music.
The Hive DGO is awarded a $7,000 matching grant to expand their Buzz Bus program. The Hive is a youth-centered nonprofit in downtown Durango providing an indoor skate park and music venue, a community garden, a space for art instruction, and other student programs. The Buzz Bus assists with youth transportation to the center and is also utilized by other nonprofit partners and as a sober transport for community members who would like to rent it for special events.
“The Hive’s Buzz Bus program focuses on decreasing the transportation barriers for local families to get youth to and from activities both in the summer and after school,” says Kelsie Borland, executive director of the Hive. “The Hive strives to also offer our Buzz Bus services to partnering agencies, such as Compañeros and their La Escuelitas youth program, to support the same mission of removing transportation barriers for families.”
The Payroll Department provides payroll and timekeeping services for more than 850 businesses and organizations in La Plata County and beyond.
The Community Foundation is the hub of philanthropy for Southwest Colorado, connecting people, ideas, and resources to benefit all who live here. We work with donors and nonprofits to create plans that will make a positive impact on our community. For more information on expanding the culture of giving to meet the needs of our region, visit swcommunityfoundation.org or call 970-375-5807.