LAKE COUNTY COMMUNITY FUND AWARDS $65,500 TO 26 COMMUNITY PROGRAMS
Community and Copper Mountain Resort Grants Announced
Leadville, Colorado, May 5, 2023
We are excited to report that the Lake County Community Fund Board of Directors met April 13 to determine two significant 2023 grant awards—the Lake County Community Grant and the Copper Mountain Resort Award.
The Board awarded $40,000 to 20 Lake County nonprofit organizations as part of the Community Grants and $25,000 to six nonprofits under the Copper Mountain Resort grant program.
Thirty applications totaling $225,953 in requests were received in this 2023 grant cycle.
In addition to the generous grant from POWDR and Copper Mountain Resort, substantial support from Lake County, the City of Leadville, and more than 234 corporate, foundation, and individual donors have made these grant awards possible.
Since 2017, the Lake County Community Fund has awarded 118 grants totaling more than $369,000 to Lake County nonprofit organizations.
Recipients were selected from a tremendously qualified and deserving pool of applicants through a robust and competitive grant review process.
Lake County Community Grant
The Lake County Community Grant supports projects that fit within the following areas:
- Arts and Culture
- Community and Economic Development
- Education and Training
- Environmental Initiatives
- Health and Wellness
Copper Mountain Resort Grant
In 2020, thanks to a four-year $200,000 matching gift from Copper Mountain Resort and POWDR, a $25,000 annual grant-making program was initiated to fund projects which include the following criteria:
- Outdoor adventure education
- Development of lifetime sports skills and
- Environmental causes
The objective of this grant is to inspire a healthy adventure lifestyle among Lake County youth, promote lifetime sports, and to support environmental causes.
Since 2020, the Lake County Community Fund has awarded 21 Copper/POWDR grants to local nonprofits, totaling $100,000.
The Board of Directors is pleased and honored to announce the recipients of the Lake County Community Fund’s 2023 Grant Awards:
Lake County Community Awards
Advocates of Lake County: Awarded $3,500 to be used for the operations budget, and to keep the facilities up to date, clean, and comfortable for clients.
Bright Start Learning Center: Awarded $3,750 to purchase resources and materials such as drinking water, first aid equipment, and gross motor toys. Bright Start strives to help families by providing continuity of care. Teachers will be able to share more resources with parents and have extra materials so that families can feel comfortable taking them home while allowing us to still have the same material in the classrooms.
CASA of the Continental Divide: Awarded $3,000 to provide funding for a Lake County coordinator, and coaching and training for all Lake County Child Advocate Volunteers. CASA’s mission is to strengthen families and communities through trauma-informed advocacy, support, and services.
Chaffee Housing Trust: Awarded $500 to support the bilingual Promotores Program which is designed to assist Lake County residents who need counseling on preparing their finances and applying for a mortgage.
City of Leadville, Historic Preservaton Commission: Awarded $3,000 to fund a complete historic context study and conduct a survey of roughly half of Leadville’s National Historic Landmark District. Despite being a National Historic Landmark, Leadville has never had a comprehensive survey of its historic resources. The lack of a full register makes it difficult for the Historic Preservation Commission to evaluate and protect the district at a time of rapid development.
Cloud City Conservation Center: Awarded $3,000 to support the Energy Assistance Fund. This Fund works to make Lake County homes safer and warmer, improve our housing stock and supports more resilient community members as they reduce their energy costs. The Energy Assistance Fund provides financial assistance to households who earn below 100% Area Median Income to address health, safety and energy issues in their homes.
Cloud City High School: Awarded $1,000 to fund Workforce Bootcamp Days which empowers students to explore diverse career pathways and opportunities. Students participate in internships, jobs, and work-based learning to support and prepare them for the workforce.
Full Circle of Lake County: Awarded $2,000 to fund the first ever Lake County Pride event on June 17. The funding will inspire future investment in Lake County by promoting our community as a diverse, inclusive, and welcoming place to visit while supporting local business and increasing tourism.
Good Natured Learning: Awarded $1,500 to fund a pair of educators from Lake County School District to become Fellows in Good Natured Learning’s 2023-2024 Brains on Nature Fellowship. Good Natured Learning is a statewide organization with an origin story nested in Lake County School District and Get Outdoors Leadville!
Healy House Museum and Dexter Cabin: Awarded $2,000 to fund the purchase of outdoor folding chairs and tables. The addition of outdoor furniture will help make weddings, concerts, family celebrations, and other events affordable for our residents.
Irish Network Colorado: Awarded $400 to fund the project that will memorialize thousands of 19th century Irish immigrants buried in unmarked graves in Evergreen Cemetery in Leadville, Colorado. Hidden in the back of the cemetery, are 1,100-1,500 Irish immigrants whose individual names and histories will finally be remembered.
Lake County Civic Center Association: Awarded $2,400 to purchase and permanently install a laser projector in the Old Church Theatre. The facility has a large 16-foot projection screen to use with the projector. This permanent projector in the facility will allow more use of the facility to include showing movies or educational and training films.
Lake County Conservation District: Awarded $1,450 to fund a raised garden bed building workshop in collaboration with Cloud City Conservation Center. This will be a one-day, hands-on workshop hosted at the Cloud City Farm and Community Garden where participants will be introduced to raised bed gardening principles and participate in the construction of raised garden beds.
Lake County Public Library: Awarded $3,500 to fund the second annual Banned Books Week Celebration at FREIGHT on October 5. The Library will be hosting George M. Johnson, author of the banned books All Boys Aren’t Blue> and We are Not Broken.
Lideres Latino Americanos: Awarded $2,700 to support the traditional holiday community event, Posadas, which is celebrated throughout Latin America. Latino leaders will celebrate this event with the community of Leadville. This is a way to included people from other cultures and will create a sense of belonging for our Latinx community in Lake County.
National Mining Museum and Hall of Fame: Awarded $500 to fund the temporary exhibit celebrating Leadville’s rich mining history that will serve the community, visitors to Leadville, and augment the experience at the Museum.
Planned Pethood Leadville: Awarded $400 to fund Leadville’s Healthy Paws spay/neuter/vaccine/microchip clinic, an annual event aimed at providing essential pet healthcare services at low or no cost to members of the Leadville/Lake County community. The event is held in collaboration with volunteer veterinarians affiliated with Planned Pethood International, including its renowned founder Dr. Jeffrey Young of Animal Planet.
Smart Bellies: Awarded $3,500 to fund the weekend food program to eliminate childhood hunger in Leadville when kids are not in school by providing bags full of nutritious food, allowing children to get the full benefit of their education and development.
St. George’s Episcopal Church: Awarded $1,900 to fund food procurement for community meals (free hot lunch), on site Food Pantry, and Mobile Food pantry. St. George continually responds to the growing food insecurity crisis in Lake County.
Tabor Opera House Preservation Foundation: Awarded $500 to fund upgrades to the stage and rigging system in advance of the 2023 event season. These upgrades are part of a series of necessary and costly system upgrades to meet industry safety protocols.
Copper Mountain Resort Awards
Blue Elements: Awarded $3,000 to fund under-represented young people in water conservation, providing valuable professional experiences through meaningful AmeriCorps service opportunities. Additionally, local capacity-limited organizations in the water conservation, education, restoration, and monitoring fields will have an affordable alternative to increase their impact.
Cloud City Mountain Sports: Awarded $6,000 to fund administrative operating costs thus helping to make the programs affordable.
Get Outdoors Leadville!: Awarded $10,000 to support the Rockies Rock Summer Camp, an eight-week summer enrichment camp for 1st-8th grade youth. The program will teach human-powered outdoor recreation, placed-based environmental education, and character development.
Lake County Recreation Department Hockey: Awarded $2,000 to fund the acquisition of a specialized set of winter hockey gear specifically tailored to Leadville conditions. The equipment is to be collected and re-distributed season to season with a lifespan estimate of 10 years. </>
Leadville Cross Country Ski Council: Awarded $2,000 to purchase a communal race kit toolbox accessible to organizations in the Leadville area that are hosting race events.
Leadville Racing: Awarded $2,000 to fund race entry fees, uniforms, bike maintenance and travel expenses. Leadville Racing has been the Lake County High School mountain bike team for the past 13 years.