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Even small grants can make a big difference. Just ask the Ritchie County Family Resource Network (FRN). The FRN received a $600 COVID-19 relief grant from the PACF to buy material, elastic, and thread for a community mask-making project.

"Ritchie County had several clothing manufacturing factories in the county in the past. When I put the call out for volunteers, many of them were these same workers," said Pam Ward, Executive Director of the FRN. "By securing these funds, the FRN was able to provide volunteers with the necessary supplies to mass produce the masks. They felt like they were being useful and able to contribute back to the community and to help with the COVID pandemic."

The masks were donated to agencies and individuals in the county, allowing service providers to continue seeing clients and residents to safely get groceries, visit doctors, and undertake other essential activities. The masks will continue to offer protection for months to come

The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation and Regional Affiliates of Doddridge County, Ritchie County, and the Little Kanawha Area (PACF) is currently accepting applications for grants for the fall cycle of its Community Action Grant Program.  The Foundation’s application process is online; the application deadline is midnight on September 15. Organizations apply to the Foundation and/or any of the affiliates on the same online application form, the Foundation’s Community Action Grants Application.  To access the online application form.

To be considered for a Community Action Grant, an applicant must be a private, nonprofit organization, tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or a public institution. Either the applicant or program to be funded must be located in the Foundation’s eleven-county geographic service area (Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Jackson, Mason, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt, and Wood counties in West Virginia, and Washington County, Ohio).  Priority counties for Foundation grant support are:  Wood, Wirt, Doddridge, Ritchie, Roane, Calhoun, and Gilmer counties.

The PACF continues to prioritize support for capital and equipment projects, new program development, capacity building, and operating support needs. Within these focus areas, the Foundation also will give special consideration to projects that build a strong, resilient, and inclusive community, including projects that address ongoing COVID-19 pandemic impact and recovery, substance use disorders and related community impact, and the advancement of an inclusive community and/or the elimination of racism and bias.

Submitted applications are considered for support from a wide variety of grant funds that the Foundation manages available to support charitable projects throughout the region.

The Foundation’s grantmaking guidelines provide additional information on eligibility and priorities for all types of grants; visit the Foundation’s website at www.pacfwv.com/Grants to access the grant guidelines and application form. For more information, contact Marian Clowes at 304-428-4438 or info@pacfwv.com.

The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation & Regional Affiliates (PACF) recently announced that it awarded $173,500 in grant support to area nonprofits through its competitive Community Action Grants Program. These grants are in addition to the approximately $115,000 that the PACF has awarded to date in response to the COVID 19 pandemic and its impact on the region.

Through the Foundation’s bi-annual Community Action Grants Program, area nonprofits seek grant assistance to address community needs.  To be considered for a Community Action Grant, an applicant must be a private, nonprofit organization or a public institution.  Either the applicant or program to be funded must be located in the Foundation’s eleven-county geographic service area (Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Jackson, Mason, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt, and Wood counties in West Virginia, and Washington County, Ohio).  Submitted applications are considered for support from charitable funds managed by the Foundation that are designed to support a wide variety of projects and causes throughout the region.

• Actors Guild of Parkersburg - $5,000 in operating support to address revenue loss from cancellation of performances.
  
• Adolescent Health Initiative, Region V - $8,800 to support programs to engage students in developing leadership skills.
  
• Cairo Volunteer Fire Department - $5,000 to upgrade personal protective equipment for firefighters.
  
•  Clover Public Service District - $8,500 to provide water to residents in Roane County by installing a water filling station.
• Coplin Health Systems – $4,500 to expand its “Farmacy” program to provide fresh fruits and vegetable to clients at the clinic site in Elizabeth, WV.
•  Doddridge County Humane Society - $1,000 to assist with a new outdoor cat enclosure.
•  Family Crisis Intervention Center of Region V, Inc. - $9,000 to assist the agency in becoming a recognized Rape Crisis Center.
•  Fourth Circuit Public Defender Corporation - $5,500 to provide transportation to clients with substance use disorder to and from treatment facilities.
•  Harrisville Woman’s Club - $3,200 to purchase a new commercial stove.
•  Harrisville Volunteer Fire Department - $2,000 to purchase turnout gear and equipment.
•  Humane Society of Parkersburg - $5,000 to purchase commercial laundry equipment for the shelter expansion.
•  Lubeck United Methodist Church - $7,000 to support the Lunch SAK program, which provides food to students at Lubeck Elementary School and Blennerhassett Elementary and Middle Schools.
•  Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and West Virginia - $1,000 to support a wish experience for a West Virginia child.
•  National Church Residences Transportation Services - $5,000 to provide transportation support for individuals with substance use disorder in Wood County, WV.
•  Parkersburg High School/Wood County Health Services - $12,500 to renovate space at the high school annex to create a school-based health center in partnership with Coplin Health Services.
•  Ritchie County Integrated Family Services - $4,000 to replace the roof on the agency’s business office.
•  SW Resources - $12,000 to start a substance use disorder transitional employment and training program for individuals in recovery programs.
•  The Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley - $15,000 to support the new Community Outreach Coordinator position to support students and parents with Individualized Education Plans.
•  The Children’s Listening Place - $7,500 to assist with outfitting a mobile unit to provide child-friendly forensic interviews for children in rural counties.
•  The iBelieve Foundation - $1,000 to provide online summer workshop experiences for area youth.
•  United Way of the Mid-Ohio Valley - $8,500 to add an executive coaching arm to the existing Striving Towards Excellent Programming (STEP) program to build capacity among the area’s nonprofit community.
•  Waverly Volunteer Fire Company - $3,000 to purchase additional protective gear for firefighters.
•  West Virginia University Extension Family Nutrition Program - $8,000 to increase the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables for Wood County students.
•  Williamstown Elementary School PTA - $3,000 to support the purchase of t-shirts to promote unification between Williamstown and Waverly families.
•  Wood County 4-H Camp - $4,250 to support capital improvements at the camp.
•  Wood County Christian School - $2,000 to offer summer camp opportunities to students in the community.
•  Wood County Schools, Office of Early Learning - $14,750 to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to Wood County, providing books monthly to children from birth to age five.

Doddridge County Community Foundation, a regional affiliate of the PACF, spring 2020 grants:

•  Doddridge County Parks and Recreation Commission - $1,500 to support the pool renovation project.
•  Nazareth Farm – $1,500 to support the home repair loan program for Doddridge County residents and to purchase tools and a work vehicle to transport materials and equipment to work sites.

Ritchie County Community Foundation, a regional affiliate of the PACF, spring 2020 grants:

•  Ritchie County High School Band - $2,700 to purchase instruments and equipment.
•  Harrisville Woman’s Club - $1,800 to purchase a new commercial stove.

The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation and Regional Affiliates (PACF) works with individuals, families, businesses, and civic or nonprofit organizations to make a positive and permanent commitment for the future of our community.  The PACF is a single 501(c)(3) public charity.  The PACF works in partnership with its local affiliates to provide leadership and develop philanthropic resources to meet the needs of an 11-county service area.  Since 1963, the PACF has helped local citizens support charitable needs and touch every aspect of life in the community in a variety of lasting ways.  For more information about the PACF, visit www.pacfwv.com or call 304-428-4438.