By LINDSEY ADKISON - The Golden Isles News(Brunswick News)
The need in Glynn County is very real. It is something that Paul White sees daily. That is why the president and CEO of the Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation and his staff work hard to find money to help area organizations. This year, they have outdone themselves.
White recently announced that 18 local groups will be gifted a record total of $82,525 by the Foundation. The money is provided through the agency’s Community Impact grant initiative. It is the largest number and highest total of grants in the Foundation’s history for the annual competitive grant program. It was a move prompted by the serious issues plaguing residents in Glynn, Camden and McIntosh counties. The Foundation annually budgets $50,000 for such needs. But foundation officials there were able to up the ante this year, gifting an additional $32,525 in donations to organizations’ grant programs. “Our comprehensive internal review process indicated that there were more qualified organizations providing critical services to this vulnerable population than we had budgeted for,” White said. “Many of our fund holders rely on us to help them maximize the impact of their philanthropy. When we reached out to them apprising them of this opportunity, they responded and the gap was covered in less than 36 hours.”
The Foundation will distribute the grants to organizations providing a variety of critical services to at-risk youth and their families. In addition to donor-advised and field of interest grant-making throughout the year, the Community Foundation also conducts a competitive grants cycle, which targets specific areas of need and opportunity across the three county region. Three of the 18 grant recipients are first-time awardees. Those receiving the Foundations’ grant funds include:
- The Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeast Georgia in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Camden Community Crisis Center, St. Marys, $5,000;
- CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Glynn, Inc., Brunswick and St. Marys, $4,675;
- Children In Action Sports Club (CIA), Brunswick, $5,000;
- Coastal Coalition for Children Inc., Brunswick, $1,700;
- Coastal Outreach Soccer in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Communities In Schools of Glynn County in Brunswick, $5,000;
- The Gathering Place in Brunswick, $4,500;
- Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia Inc., St. Marys, $4,900;
- Girls On The Run of the Golden Isles in Darien, $4,250;
- Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Golden Isles Youth Orchestra in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Marshes of Glynn Libraries in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Morningstar Children and Family Services Inc. in Brunswick, $5,000;
- Safe Harbor Children’s Center Inc., Brunswick, $5,000;
- Social Opportunities & Active Recreation Inc. (SOAR) in Brunswick, $5,000;
- St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Darien, $5,000; and
- The YMCA of Coastal Georgia Inc. in Brunswick and Darien, $2,000.