FY 2008 Community Reinvestment Fund Awards

The WSGC Board of Directors are pleased to present this years list of Community Reinvestment Funds made available to area organizations working to improve our community.

Aldo Leopold Nature Center $600
In 2007, 69 8-10 year olds participated in the Campfire Gourmet programming as part of Academy A.L.D.O. designed to impart the values of stewardship for the environment through hands-on, sensory discovery. Specifically, Campfire Gourmet seeks to introduce organic, nutritious and educational cooking opportunities for these Madison area youth and funding will be used to continue offering this program at the ALNC Monona campus.

Angelic Organics Learning Center $1,000
In 2008, more than 50 farmer trainees will study organic farming through the Crafting Farmers Project (CRAFT) offered by Angelic Organics located in Northern Illinois.
CRAFT offers education and access to beginning or transitioning organic farmers including business planning, mentoring and inroads to organic land, infrastructure and markets. This funding will provide general support for the delivery of the CRAFT and Stateline Farm Beginnings programs through December 31, 2008.

Community Action Coalition of SC WI $1,000
In order to improve their programs in providing 17 accessible community gardens in the Madison area, CAC seeks this funding to purchase a loader bucket to attach to their John Deere tractor for use in composting as they carry out their Food Security Program.

Community Connections $1,200
Working with the inmates of Oakhill Correctional Institution in Oregon, WI, this all-volunteer organization seeks funding to increase and enhance resources on nutrition and continue this program focused on providing education to inmates on better nutrition for themselves and their families and promoting local food production employment opportunities upon release.

Dane County TimeBank & East Isthmus $1,000
Neighborhood Planning Council
Working with young people from Madison’s eastside Darbo-Worthington neighborhood, organizers are seeking this funding to provide more access to education and awareness about healthy foods and eating through their By Youth For Youth programming.
(Amount Requested: $3,000 – Committee voted to partially fund this request in order to support the project but allow more money to be spread among other CRF proposals.)

Friends of Troy Gardens $2,250
Interns play an important role at Madison’s only working farm and this award would provide funding to create enduring, formalized curriculum for 60 new interns each season who provide assistance for other youth programs and support for the farm’s operations.

Goodman Atwood Community Center $1,000
Three separate programs are planned to increase awareness about healthy eating for participants of this near-eastside center’s youth groups. Sharing nutrition education as well as highlighting career options, teens will procure, cook and taste healthy cuisine under the guidance of a local chef. This funding was requested specifically to purchase industrial cooking supplies/tools.

Madison Area Urban Ministry $1,000
The “Just Bakery” project of MUM is a cooperative educational and vocational training program that will provide an introduction to the craft of baking bread to formerly incarcerated individuals in order to inspire interest in pursuing a culinary career and create inroads to the programs offered by Madison Area Technical College. Funding will be used to purchase equipment and supplies needed to begin implementing the program.

Madison Children's Museum $450
Discovery to Go is a mobile exhibit offering MCM activities and was designed to bring about better access to museum programs for children and families who might otherwise not visit the museum. Family Fun Night at the end of the season then provides a final event at the MCM with an open house for families served by the Discovery to Go activities. The funding requested will be used to purchase fresh regional foods to complete their messages about eating healthy foods, how they grow and the connection between land and table.

Malcolm Shabazz City High School $1,000
Part of an on-going program, Play with your Food was created to encourage students to learn more about healthy food preparation, nutrition and organic farming, funding for this request will be utilized for a week-long field trip for students to rural Wisconsin including a tour of Organic Valley and working on an organic farm.

Operation Welcome Home $800
Operation Welcome Home is an all-volunteer organization led by homeless people for homeless people in Madison, WI. Formed to provide a means for the homeless to collaborate and develop individual and group leadership, organizers are focused on advocating for social change within the institutional landscape of homeless services. Funding will be used to purchase food for weekly meetings, which will be prepared by participants in the Leadership Development series and to support the organization’s operations during their grassroots stage.

The Rainbow Project, Inc. $1,200
In order to provide healthy, nutritional meals at their monthly session, parents and children participating in the Mothering Beyond Fear and Sadness support group will be presented with an educated series about the effects of eating healthier foods to support wellbeing. Funding will also be used to purchase monthly dinners for 12 adults and 8 children seeking assistance with their domestic abuse issues and to purchase nutritional materials for participants.

YMCA of Dane County $1,000
Four childcare sites on Madison’s eastside will benefit from healthy snacks purchased with the funding of this proposal. The 10-week summer session is expected to serve approximately 185 children in grades K-5 with a high proportion of children from low-income families. Coupled with an educational component, participants will be encouraged to incorporate fruits and vegetables into their eating using the rainbow model developed by the USDA.

Total Awards: $13,500