Discretionary Grantmaking Programs (The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation)

Discretionary Grantmaking Programs (The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation) is sponsored by The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation. The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation invites applications for its discretionary grantmaking programs, focusing on Community Economic Development, Education, Health, Arts & Culture, and Basic Needs.

Grants Update: Foundation Announces 2025 First Quarter Discretionary Grants - The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation Grants Update: Foundation Announces 2025 First Quarter Discretionary Grants Charleston, WV – The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation (TGKVF) Board of Trustees approved the distribution of 21 grants totaling $1,632,000.

TGKVF awarded $52,000 to Arts & Culture projects and $424,000 to projects in the Foundation’s proactive areas of Community Economic Development (CED), Education, and Health. In addition, continued generous support from an anonymous donor provided funding to Emergency Aid projects totaling $111,000.

Additional awards include $45,000 to Special Initiatives projects and $1,000,000 in the form of a ten-year extended commitment to West Virginia State University School of Agriculture. The Salvation Army – The Salvation Army Red Shield Youth Center: Readers Are Leaders: $60,000 (Education) Readers Are Leaders (RAL) is a literacy-based program designed to help the youth of Kanawha County succeed and advance in their education.

Led by The Salvation Army Red Shield Youth Center, RAL works with community partners with an emphasis on developing literacy skills and overcoming educational challenges. Incorporating evidence-based programs including virtual tutoring, interactive activities, a summer literacy focus, and family engagement, RAL will cultivate life-long readers.

Funding from TGKVF will provide for the continuation of the successful RAL program and the replacement of aging computer equipment at the St. Albans site.

The Education Alliance – EmpowerEd Fund: Supporting Educators with Flexible Funding to Transform Teaching and Learning: $50,000 (Education) The Education Alliance, in partnership with Clay and Fayette County Schools, will launch the EmpowerEd Mini-Grants project to provide educators with flexible funding to enhance teaching and learning.

The program will award 10-12 mini-grants of $3,000 each in its pilot year, empowering teachers to implement innovative classroom initiatives. Additionally, the project will host two EmpowerEd Table Talk gatherings where teacher grantees can share project outcomes, exchange ideas, and build professional networks.

This initiative aims to spark creativity, foster innovation, and support educator collaboration, ultimately enriching the educational experience for students in participating counties. West Virginia Public Broadcasting – Daniel Tiger’s Little Learners Year 3: $50,000 This project expands the Daniel Tiger’s Little Learners initiative, bringing curriculum, instruction, and support to preschoolers in Clay, Lincoln, and Kanawha counties.

Based on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood from Fred Rogers’ landmark social-emotional learning curriculum, it includes classroom kits with lessons to help manage emotions and develop critical social skills while exploring and creating. Caregivers receive family activities, monthly updates, and books for children, and they attend a family night.

Ambassadors from Boone County who have implemented the program will help train and support new educators. TGKVF funding will support classroom materials, books, and staffing.

Exceptional Possibilities of WV, Inc. – Talking Time AAC Summer Camp: $16,000 (Education) Augmentative and Alternative Communication Summer Camp (AAC), a program of Exceptional Possibilities of WV, Inc., specializes in work with children and young adults with disabilities. The weeklong camp will occur July 14-18, 2025 in Kanawha County, and will be accessible for individuals with disabilities who use AAC to communicate.

The requested funds will pay camp fees and educational sessions for parents/caregivers, purchase materials for daily themed activities pertaining to the use of each child’s AAC device, and offer nutritional meal options. Each participant will participate in real life scenarios with community partners to improve their functionality.

City of Smithers, WV – Renewing Americorps/VISTA Assignment at Smithers: $17,000 (CED) Through this project, the City of Smithers will renew their Americorps/VISTA position. TGKVF funds will support the remuneration, training, and oversight as part of the WV Ready Program.

The Americorps volunteer will continue the growing trajectory of helping expand city’s capacity to lay groundwork for community improvements and critically needed economic development in ways sustainable after their volunteer service has ended.

West Virginia Military Authority – Base Innovations: Supporting Veterans and their Families in Economic Development: $40,000 (CED) Base Innovations will support veterans, active military, military family members, and those in substance abuse recovery with an opportunity to learn the skills to become an entrepreneur or expand an existing business to meet today’s everchanging business landscape.

Programs and support services offered will target these individuals located in the Kanawha Valley counties of Boone, Clay, Fayette, Kanawha, Lincoln, and Putnam, as well as many of the surrounding counties in the area. Through this project, the supplies to complete Base Innovations as a facility will be purchased to make it an all-inclusive and welcome small business center in the heart of Charleston.

Advantage Valley, Inc. – Empowering Entrepreneurs: Learning and Certification Initiatives for Small Business Growth: $35,000 (CED) TGKVF’s funding will support Advantage Valley’s mission of fostering entrepreneurial success and economic development in Boone, Clay, Kanawha, Lincoln, and Putnam counties. Funds will be allocated to two key initiatives.

The first is the development of a Learning Management System for the FASTER WV program, offering practical training modules to equip entrepreneurs and small business owners with essential skills. The second initiative focuses on assisting disadvantaged businesses in obtaining certifications to expand their market opportunities.

These projects aim to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, promote inclusivity, and drive economic growth. West Virginia Community Development Hub, Inc. – Community Leadership Capacity Building and Project Implementation through HubCAP V (Year 3): $45,000 (CED) TGKVF funding will support the participation of the Communities of Achievement Program (HubCAP V) in Montgomery, Oak Hill, and Smithers.

This program focuses on cultivating leadership, building strong teams, connecting communities with economic development resources, and strategizing to identify and advance key local projects. Participating towns leverage these efforts to create new pathways to wealth and resilience.

HubCAP communities are collaborating with municipalities, community-based nonprofits, local Economic Development Authorities, and the WVU Center for Design, with efforts continuing through 2025. Appalachian Service Project – Home Replacement and Repair: $35,000 (CED) Appalachia Service Project inspires hope and service through volunteer home repair and replacement in Central Appalachia.

ASP’s home repair program will continue to make homes warmer, safer, and drier in Clay, Fayette, and Kanawha counties, contributing to neighborhood revitalization as well as reducing housing as a negative social determinant of health.

Activities include providing critical home repairs for 30 homes as well as strategically collaborating with other community organizations to provide a renewed sense of safety, pride, and hope for underserved citizens. ASP will serve approximately 60 individuals (2 individuals per home) across the service area.

Camp SOAR – Camp SOAR – Summer Outdoor Arts and Recreation: $35,000 (Health) Camp SOAR is a six-week half-day summer camp for youth in Fayette County. At the Camp, youth aged nine through 12 learn through outdoor education, recreation, arts, and relaxation. Campers are guided by teen counselors and responsible adults.

Experiential learning balances structured activities with opportunities for free play to help foster curiosity, whole body health, social skills, self-efficacy, and connection to community. Teen counselors learn leadership, teamwork, organizational skills, empathy, and patience. The Greater Kanawha Valley funds will be used to provide scholarships, equipment, and transportation fees.

West Virginia University Foundation – Building Nurse-Led Access to Care Points Within West Virginia Faith Community Settings: $41,000 (Health) This project aims to identify and support nurses from rural communities within TGKVF’s six-county service area. Selected nurses will complete the National Foundations of Faith Community Nursing course to enhance their ability to provide holistic care and address community health needs.

The requested funds will be used to provide training, equip nurses with necessary supplies, and offer mentorship, support, and stipends to facilitate their work in these underserved areas. By empowering nurses through education and resources, the project seeks to improve health outcomes and strengthen community-based access to care within these rural counties.

West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Inc. – Symphony Sunday 2025: A Community Building Celebration of Music: $10,000 (Arts & Culture) The WVSO will connect visual, performing, and culinary West Virginia artists with customers and clients by inviting them to exhibit and perform during AVN Symphony Sunday, a free, daylong celebration of the arts on June 1, 2025, featuring the WVSO and other community bands at the University of Charleston.

This festival has the potential to benefit artists from all West Virginia counties, but specifically, Boone, Clay, Fayette, Kanawha, Lincoln, and Putnam counties by providing participation and exhibition opportunities. Costs include renting and setting up the stage, tents, display tables and chairs, and paying professional WVSO musicians to perform.

Mid-Atlantic Dance Initiative, Inc. – Mid- Atlantic Dance Initiative (MADI) Guest Artist: $10,000 (Arts & Culture) Broadway choreographer James A. Kinney and three professional dancers will visit the MADI (Mid-Atlantic Dance Initiative) Festival 2025.

Without professionals like Kinney, MADI could not fulfill its mission of connecting aspiring dancers with accomplished professionals, particularly those lacking resources for summer intensives or college programs. As West Virginia’s only educational dance festival of its caliber, MADI provides fee waivers to disadvantaged students.

Beyond teaching master classes, Kinney and his Broadway dancers will perform in a free public gala concert with MADI dancers, bringing professional-level dance performance to the Kanawha Valley community this June.

FestivALL Charleston, West Virginia, Inc. – FestivALL Charleston Sustainability Project: $32,000 (Arts & Culture) West Virginia State University Foundation (WVSU)– Building Capacity for the WVSU School of Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources: $1,000,000 (Special Initiatives) WVSU proposes to leverage its designation as an 1890 Land-Grant Institution by fully implementing its tripartite mission of teaching, research, and extension through establishing a School of Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources which will deliver interdisciplinary programs that will prepare students to address the critical challenges facing the food and agriculture industries.

Specifically under this funding opportunity, WVSU will focus on resources to build the structure needed to support the school overall as well as starting two new academic programs around Veterinary Technology and Food Science. Funding from TGKVF will be awarded over an extended 10-year period.

Charleston Sports Council – Cycling Promotion & Education in Charleston, WV: $25,000 (Special Initiatives) The Charleston Sports Council will start a pilot program with the 2025 USA Cycling ProRoad National Championships as a backdrop to create opportunities for children to learn, grow, and adopt healthier lifestyles. Through a partnership with the Bahati Foundation and Mary C.

Snow West Side Elementary School, the program will donate 25 new bikes and helmets to students for an afterschool cycling program that will promote active lifestyles and the benefits of cycle which include cycling as a sustainable form of transportation.

The Bahati Foundation’s Founder, Rahsaan Bahati, will draw on his experience and rise from a youngster growing up in South Central Los Angeles to becoming a 10-time US National Champion.

Charleston Regatta, Inc. – 2025 Charleston Sternwheel Regatta: $20,000 (Special Initiatives) This four-day music and arts festival located in downtown Charleston highlights our city’s unique river heritage, community socialization, public education, and family-friendly recreation. A diverse range of free music creates economic prosperity for local businesses and organizations.

Regatta provides at-risk youth no-cost carnival rides and meals, bike-giveaways, and a multitude of free artistic, educational, and recreational activities throughout the event. Funds provided through this grant will assist with securing great local artists for our opening acts, support and advertise the Young Entrepreneurs Market, and support the local Skate Park activities for youth.

Daymark, Incorporated – New Connections Independent Living and Education Program: $12,000 (Emergency Aid) Daymark’s New Connections operates an Independent Living and Education Program for youth and young adults. Located in Charleston, the program is open to youth from all over the state. The purpose of the New Connections program is to increase chances for young people in crisis to obtain a meaningful future.

Youth are enrolled in a GED program and/ or live in on-site apartments while learning and practicing independent living skills. TGKVF funding will support staff salaries and utility expenses.

Kanawha County 4-H Foundation (DBA Camp Virgil Tate) – Camp Virgil Tate Emergency Water Lines: $20,000 Camp Virgil Tate is a facility that hosts residential youth camping, community events such as weddings and family reunions, and serves as a meeting space for local businesses and organizations. Camp Tate yearly serves over 1,400 youth through residential camping and outdoor classrooms each year.

The camp also hosts three annual community events – Easter Egg Hunt, Fall Festival, Breakfast with Santa – reaching approximately 1,000 residents. The facility has an aging infrastructure. Two water leaks were recently discovered causing a water usage of 16 gallons per minute.

One repair has been completed in-house. The facility cannot conduct business as usual until the water lines are repaired and replaced. Funding from TGKVF will support with repairs.

Marshall University Research Corporation – Kanawha County HCV Peer Navigator: $29,000 (Emergency Aid) TGKVF funding will allow for ongoing support for individuals in Kanawha County at high risk for hepatitis C. HCV Peer Navigators will engage with health departments, recovery residences, and reentry programs to promote HCV education, testing, treatment, and linkage to additional screenings.

Outreach will be expanded through health fairs, conferences, and community activities. Peer Navigators will track data securely using HIPAA-compliant tools and the Chess Health app, offering incentives for participation. The goal is to test 125 individuals and link those with positive results to treatment.

The Salvation Army – Social Services: $50,000 (Emergency Aid) The Salvation Army’s Social Services provides direct assistance to low-income or no- income households in Boone, Clay, Kanawha, and Putnam counties. Clients are provided with rent and utility assistance to prevent homelessness or to obtain housing.

Salvation Army’s food pantry provides monthly food boxes for families and individuals as well as weekly bags for the homeless population. In addition to TGKVF funds, Salvation Army provides clothing and household vouchers, help with hygiene products, blankets for the homeless, Seasonal Christmas assistance with toys and food gift cards, pop-up feedings, and disaster assistance when needed.

The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation is grateful to our community of generous donors who make these and other grants possible. The programs and work approved for the first quarter of 2025 are supported by the following funds: Anonymous Emergency Aid; Senator William E. Chilton, Sr.; Christ Life Fellowship Benevolence; Ellsworth R.

and Caroline H. Clark; William O. Clarkson; Helen R.

Coffindaffer Revocable Inter Vivos Trust; Columbia Gas; Lenore Cox Compton Memorial; Cox-Morton; J. Honor Davis II; Jane M. and Rugeley P.

DeVan, Jr.; Mary Lewis Dickinson; James F. Duncan Charitable General Funds; J. W.

and Gabrielle P. Hubbard, Jr.; Woody and Helen Hunsinger; Blanche E. Jacobson; Bernard H.

Jacobson Cultural; Alice Ann Koontz; Lowenstein #1; Lillian M. Mairs; Irenaeus J. and Minnie Putney Stanley Trust; Nancy Gay Randolph; George and Josephine Rogers; Harry and Marion M.

Shapero; Pauline G. Sisson; David and Sandy Thomas Charitable Fund; Mary F. Thomas Memorial General; Dora Elizabeth Thompson Memorial; Stephen C.

and Adeline J. Voorhees; Gene T. and Bonnie K.

Waggy Gift; and Youth Enrichment Fund. You must be logged in to post a comment.