Impact 100 Owensboro, a women’s philanthropic organization that has now awarded $100,000 grants for 14 years, and NextGen, a teenage, female-based member group modeled after Impact 100, announced 2019 grant recipients Thursday night at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
The previously-selected finalists gave a presentation at the annual meeting before members voted. Those members not in attendance voted by absentee ballot prior to the meeting.
Boulware Center and Salvation Army were each selected to receive a $100,000 grant.
Boulware Center will use the grant to replace sewer lines servicing their 73-year-old facility and renovate two facility bathrooms, which are used daily by 50 men.
“When asking for plumbing lines and sewer lines, it’s a hard sell, but we appreciate it so much,” said Leigha Taylor, executive director at the Boulware Center, while accepting the check Thursday.
The Salvation Army plans to use the $100,000 to remodel and expand their current kitchen to accommodate the 80-150 meals a week served at their facility. The remodel will impact every program The Salvation Army currently offers.
When accepting their organization’s check, Captains Rebekah and Aaron Abram of the Salvation Army thanked the Impact focus group who helped them become a finalist for the grant.
“We’re more than red kettles,” Aaron said. “We are who people go to for helping. We promise to do the most good.”
Money collected beyond the two $100,000 grants is given in a residual grant, which was awarded to St. Benedict’s Homeless Shelter in the amount of $41,000. The shelter will use the grant for renovating and improving the quality of their newly established St. Benedict’s Women and Family Services. This shelter will be a safe place for homeless women and their children and will create day and night safety, according to St. Benedict’s Executive Director Harry Pedigo.
“We need to give the homeless purpose and intentionality and not stigmatize them,” Pedigo said of the need for a place for the homeless to go during the day.
NextGen awarded a $13,000 grant to Western Kentucky Regional Blood Center to purchase seven stationary donor beds for the Owensboro donor center.
“What a terrific learning opportunity,” said Director of Donor Resources at Western Kentucky Regional Blood Center Vicki Ellis of the 130 teen members who participated in NextGen.
NextGen member Maggie Beth Bacon said that being involved in NextGen for the past three years has become an important part of her life and that attending the site visits of the nonprofits who have written grants has become an important part of her life.
“I learned of the critical need for blood donors in our area,” Bacon told the attendees of her visit to the blood center.
NextGen chair Joy Carroll said that she is proud of the NextGen members’ dedication, determination, curiosity and commitment to their community.
“You have continued to impress the women of IMPACT 100 and local nonprofits with your respect, intelligence and ability to evoke empathy toward others. And all at such an early age,” Carroll said.
Impact100 President Carol Bothwell announced that next year, Impact 100 Owensboro will celebrate its 15-year anniversary and plans to bring Impact 100 founder Wendy Steele to speak to the 600-plus women who have been in Impact since its inception. Steele will also speak at the March 2020 Rooster Booster.
With 254 members in 2019, Impact 100 was able to award a total of $254,000 to nonprofit organizations in the community. In the 14 years since Impact 100 Owensboro began, the nonprofit will have awarded $3,086,500 in grants.
NextGen has grown from 35 members in its inaugural year, to 130 members in its third and has awarded $26,700 to the greater Owensboro area.
“This is always the most exciting night for us and our members as we finally get to celebrate all of this year’s long hard work and give out those much needed funds locally,” Bothwell said.
