TELLURIDE, Colo. (Dec. 30, 2015) – Seventy two regional nonprofits will end the year happy to know they will have more funding for their critical programs and projects. The Telluride Foundation announced its Community Grant awards on December 30th, following its Board of Directors. In its fourteenth year of giving Community Grants, the Foundation awarded $984,650 to nonprofit organizations serving the region, bringing the total grants given in 2015 by the Foundation to just under $4 million. The Foundation has provided over $38 million in grants to the region since its inception in 2000, without an endowment.
“The Community Grants program is a fundamental program of the Telluride Foundation, which supports a vibrant community and a strong safety net” said Davis Fansler, Chair of the Grants Committee. “Our region is fortunate to have such committed and generous donors that appreciate and support the important work of our local hardworking nonprofits.”
In its 2015 annual Community Granting cycle, the Foundation received 82 applications seeking over $1.3 million. The Foundation awarded grants ranging from $1,900 to $90,000, with 28 percent going to human services; 18 percent funding arts and culture; 18 percent to education; 16 percent to early childhood development; 15 percent to athletic groups; and 5 percent to the environment/animals. Local groups receiving grant awards included organizations serving Telluride, Rico, Ouray, Ridgway, Norwood, Nucla, Naturita, and Paradox. The Telluride Foundation supports regional organizations that serve San Miguel, Ouray, west Montrose and portions of Dolores counties.
“This year the Foundation, after two years of planning, instituted a new policy having applicants take one in five years off for applying for a grant,” said Paul Major, President & CEO of the Telluride Foundation. “About 13 organizations volunteered to take this round off, providing additional funding that the Grants Committee could allocate to new programs and projects as well as to capital applications. This policy’s primary intent is to reinforce nonprofit sustainability and financial health by encouraging financial reserves, diverse revenue streams, and earned income opportunities, in addition to reducing dependency on a single funder, such as the Telluride Foundation.”
“Also as a new policy, the Foundation is funding capital projects. This year we awarded three capital grants totaling $135,000” said April Montgomery, Programs Director at the Telluride Foundation. “From a commercial kitchen in Naturita, a new bus for Paradox Charter School students, to a new snow cat for grooming Nordic trails, these capital projects will be a lasting, substantial benefit to the region, helping to address critical needs for local communities.”
The Telluride Foundation’s Community Grant award recommendations are drafted by the seven-member Grants Committee, all of whom sit on the Foundation’s Board of Directors. The committee evaluates the grant requests against a rigorous set of criteria and forwards their slate of recommendations to the full Board for review and final approval. The Grants Committee is comprised of Chairman Davis Fansler, Ann Andrews, Richard Betts, Kevin Holbrook, Megan McManemin, Joanne Brown, and George Glasier. Their recommendations were reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting on December 30th. The Foundation’s next round of local grant applications will be due in October 2016, and announced at the end of December 2016.
In addition to its annual Community Grant awards, the Foundation has continued to expand its funding and the reach of Impact Initiatives such as its Telluride Venture Accelerator, broadband initiative, workforce housing initiative, STEM professional development initiative, family emergency Good Neighbor Fund, and Paradox Community Development Initiative.
La Fundación Telluride existe para crear una comunidad Telluride más fuerte a través del cultivo y la promoción de la filantropía. Es una fundación comunitaria apolítica y sin ánimo de lucro que apoya durante todo el año a organizaciones locales dedicadas a las artes, la educación, el atletismo, las causas benéficas, la conservación de la tierra y otros esfuerzos comunitarios a través de la asistencia técnica, la educación y la concesión de subvenciones. La Fundación concede subvenciones a solicitantes cualificados que sirven a las personas que viven y/o trabajan en la región de Telluride con el fin de mejorar la calidad de vida en la región. Para más información sobre la Fundación Telluride, visite www.telluridefoundation.org.
