KINGWOOD — The EQT Foundation is donating $160,000 to West Virginia communities with grants to the Mountaineer Food Bank and relief funds at the Community Foundation for the Ohio Valley, Parkersburg Area Community Foundation & Regional Affiliates and Your Community Foundation of North Central West Virginia.
In a press release EQT Foundation President Ellen Rossi said, “The EQT Foundation is pleased to alleviaqte the burdens of this pandemic on West Virginia’s citizens and nonprofits. Our commitment is to support the food bank and relief funds serving the communities of the state that we are working in.”
One of the grant recipients was the Your Community Foundation.
According to Patty Showers Ryan, President YCF, YCF received $50,000 of the donation to support programs in Harrison, Marion, Monongalia, Preston and Taylor counties.
Ryan said the $50,000 will go into the YCF Emergency Impact Fund and be handed out in grants to local nonprofits.
“It will support nonprofits providing basic human needs across the five counties served by YCF,” she said.
Ryan said YCF would be providing grants of $500 to $2,500 to local nonprofits like food pantries and baby pantries and to programs like meals on wheels for seniors. She said the YCF committee will be going over grant applications next week.
“As long as we have funding available, we will make these grants,” Ryan said. “I’m concerned this will be long term for our communities. I don’t believe the request for food will go away in a couple of months.”
She said funding is currently difficult for some of the nonprofits because they had to cancel their usual fundraising events.
Ryan said the EQT grant is the most significant grant YCF has received.
“Giant Eagle donated $5,000 and a few more foundations reached out to us and said they would be providing us with some funds,” she said.
Ryan said a grant application is located on YCF’s website. She said it is an abbreviated form that can be filled out quickly.
“We made it easy to complete because we realize the nonprofits are under a lot of stress to serve their communities needs,” she said.
To fill out a grant application or to donate to YCF go to ycfwv.org.
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