News

The EQT Foundation is partnering with the Doddridge County Community Foundation to make a lasting and meaningful investment in Doddridge County.  With a gift of $92,000 to the Doddridge County Community Foundation (DCCF), the EQT Foundation is investing in the Foundation’s skill and expertise in growing community endowment, supporting community improvement projects, and providing scholarship assistance to area students.

A portion of the EQT Foundation’s gift will be used to grow the Foundation’s unrestricted community endowment fund, the Doddridge County Grantmaking Fund.  This Fund enables the DCCF to address community needs and invest in new opportunities for Doddridge County residents.  The EQT Foundation’s gift will allow the DCCF to make a larger impact through its bi-annual grant cycle, including in spring 2020.  Organizations interested in applying for grant support can visit the Foundation’s website, www.pacfwv.com/Grants, to review grantmaking guidelines and access the online application form. The next application deadline is February 15.

The remainder of the EQT Foundation gift will create the EQT Scholarship for Doddridge County graduating high school seniors.  Through this gift, the DCCF will award five $1,000 one-year scholarships and one renewable scholarship (with an annual value of up to $18,000) to Doddridge County students.  To be considered for an EQT Scholarship, applicants must be graduating seniors at Doddridge County High School, or an equivalent home school program, must be Doddridge County residents, and must be pursuing a degree in a field related to the oil & gas industry (for example, computer science/information technology; chemical, civil, or petroleum engineering; energy or land management; environmental science, geology, or safety science).  To see the full scholarship eligibility requirements and to apply using the Foundation’s consolidated scholarship application form, visit the Foundation’s website, www.pacfwv.com/Scholarships.

”The EQT Foundation strives to identify opportunities that impact the communities we serve in powerful ways.  What better way to shape the future than by supporting community needs, as well as the education of tomorrow’s leaders and innovators,” said Ellen Rossi, EQT Foundation Manager.  “We are thrilled to award the community-building grant as well as the scholarship program to the Doddridge County community through the assistance of the Doddridge County Community Foundation.  We look forward to learning more about the exceptional achievements and professional aspirations of this year’s recipients.”

“We are excited to partner with the EQT Foundation and we are grateful for their support for our community improvement efforts,” said Rick Oyler, DCCF Advisory Board Chairman. “This gift from the EQT Foundation will enable us to address critical community needs now, to build long-term resources to meet future needs, and to invest in our community’s next generation.  We applaud EQT Foundation’s commitment to Doddridge County.”

About Doddridge County Community Foundation:

Celebrating 20 years of serving the community, the Doddridge Community Foundation (DCCF) works with charitable individuals to make a positive and permanent commitment for the future of Doddridge County, West Virginia.  DCCF is an affiliate of the Parkersburg Area Community Foundation (PACF). The PACF is a single 501(c)(3) public charity that manages a philanthropic endowment of more than 360 funds amounting to more than $43 million in assets, each representing a unique giving partnership with an individual, a family, or a business, civic or nonprofit organization. The PACF works in partnership with local level organizations (affiliates) to provide leadership and develop philanthropic resources to meet the needs of our 11-county service district. Since 1999, the Doddridge Community Foundation has helped local citizens support the causes that are most important to them and touch every aspect of life in our communities in a wide variety of significant and lasting ways. For more information about the PACF and its affiliate, DCCF, or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, visit www.pacfwv.com or call 304-428-4438.

About EQT Foundation:

The EQT Foundation was established by EQT Corporation, one of the nation’s premier natural gas producers, and is committed to the social and economic vitality of our operating regions.  The EQT Foundation believes in meaningful engagement with the communities it calls home and takes great pride in the role as both a responsible and responsive corporate citizen.  The EQT Foundation has developed strong partnerships with a variety of nonprofit organizations to enrich the diversity and viability of our communities, sustain the principles of continuous learning, and focus on environmental protection efforts. Read more at: www.eqt.com/community/eqt-foundation   

The Ritchie County Community Foundation, an affiliate of Parkersburg Area Community Foundation, announces the availability of grants for Ritchie County educators seeking support for professional development opportunities and for academic school improvement projects at Ritchie County schools through the O. Eugene and Mary Scott Smith Memorial Fund.

The Fund provides grants for individual teachers who are seeking to further their education, for groups of teachers pursuing professional development opportunities, and for schools for projects that improve the academic curriculum. Funds are not available for athletic projects at schools. Applications, whether for support for individual teachers, groups of teachers, or for academic improvement projects, must be submitted through a Ritchie County school. The application deadline is February 15. Schools must apply using the Foundation’s online Community Action Grant application, which is available on the Foundation’s website, www.pacfwv.com/Grants.

The Fund honors Gene and Mary Smith, who were natives of Ritchie County and were educated in Ritchie County schools. Gene and Mary instilled their love of education in their eight children who all attended Ritchie County schools. Three of them became teachers. Because of Gene and Mary’s influence, there are more than forty college degrees including two doctorates in their large, extended family.

Schools are encouraged to apply for this grant opportunity. Project requests also will be considered for support from other Foundation grantmaking funds, including funds available from the Parkersburg Area Community Foundation. For questions or more information, contact Marian Clowes at 304-428-4438 or marian.clowes@pacfwv.com.

The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation and Regional Affiliates (PACF) is supporting the health, human services, recreation, and education needs of our community through its fall grant awards. At a December 4 reception, the PACF announced $203,381 in grant awards to support charitable projects benefiting the residents of 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, 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).  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.

The fall 2019 Parkersburg Area Community Foundation & Regional Affiliates grant recipients are:

• American Red Cross of Northwest West Virginia Chapter - $4,000 to install smoke alarms in homes and assist families impacted by house fires
• Boys and Girls Club of Parkersburg - $15,000 to replace the HVAC unit serving the gymnasium
• Boys and Girls Club of Pleasants County - $2,020 to purchase materials and supplies to enhance Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math programs
• Calhoun County Committee on Aging - $4,550 to replace an air conditioning unit
• Calhoun County Family Resource Network – $7,500 to provide healthy food for limited-resource senior citizens
• Calhoun County Schools - $9,650 for suicide prevention programs
• City of Spencer - $6,400 to renovate the Spencer Armory
• Doddridge County Family Resource Network - $2,650 to purchase bedding for youth through the annual Good Shepherd Tree Program
• Ely Chapman Education Foundation - $6,700 to purchase a new commercial dishwasher
• GFWC Parkersburg Woman’s Club - $5,000 to support the Brown Bag project, which provides nutritious food for weekends for students in need at McKinley and Emerson Elementary Schools
• Gilmer County Family Resource Network - $2,000 to support the teen shoe box project, which provides hygiene items, gloves, and socks for teens at Christmas
• Harmony Mental Health - $3,750 to assist with renovations to their new facility in Elizabeth, WV, where they provide counseling services and trauma-informed care
• Healthy Grandfamilies Coalition - $5,000 to provide meals at educational programs to help grandparents who are raising grandchildren
• Mid-Ohio Valley Foster Grandparent Program - $4,000 to support seniors who mentor children in schools and nonprofits organizations in the region
• Normantown Historical Community Center - $10,575 to replace a roof on their facility in Gilmer County
• Parents and Friends of the Hearing Impaired - $5,000 to provide hearing aids to limited-resource individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing
• Parkersburg and Wood County Public Library - $15,000 to upgrade technology and equipment
• Regeneration/Packs of Plenty - $3,500 to provide food to Ritchie County students on weekends and school holidays
• Ritchie County Family Resource Network - $1,000 to purchase hygiene and cleaning products to be distributed to low-income individuals
• Rosenbaum Family House and WVU Medicine - $5,000 to assist with costs for patient families from the PACF service region who stay at the house during care and treatment for a loved one or family member
• South Parkersburg United Methodist - $6,000 to support the Backpack Blessings Program, which provides food on weekends to students from Martin, Gihon, and Fairplains elementary schools
• The Salvation Army - $15,000 to upgrade kitchen equipment to provide hot and nutritious meals to those who struggle with poverty and hunger
• Voices for Children – CASA - $11,400 to support programs that provide direct services through volunteer advocacy for abused and neglected children
• Wood County Schools - $15,000 to support training and implementation of Safe Talk, a suicide prevention program
• Wood County Society - $12,500 to support staffing for the new ArtBeat Studio, a collaborative and adaptive community art studio
• West Virginia Health Right - $6,500 to purchase dental supplies for the mobile dental unit serving Roane County residents
• West Virginia University at Parkersburg - $5,000 to purchase supplies and equipment for two summerTeen Tech Academies to provide Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math experiences for area youth
• YMCA of Parkersburg - $12,500 to purchase a Microsoft Surface Pro for each of ten after-school sites to use for academic mentoring and for general operating support

In addition, through the support of the Tamara K. Brown Helping to Heal Fund, the Hollow Creeks Fund, and the Mid-Ohio Valley Endowment for Women, Children, and Families, the PACF provided support to school nurses at the following schools to purchase equipment to help them meet student health needs:

• Blennerhassett Elementary School - $250 to purchase period preparedness kits for 5^th grade girls
• Blennerhassett Middle School  - $60 to purchase an automatic wrist blood pressure monitor
• Franklin Elementary Center - $246 to purchase a “Stop the Bleed” kit and supplies to address traumatic injuries
• Greenmont Elementary School - $230 to purchase a refrigerator to store medications
• Kanawha Elementary School - $150 to renovate gym shower rooms for student use
• Parkersburg South High School - $250 to purchase CPR training supplies

In addition to the grants announced above, the Foundation’s Ritchie County, Doddridge County, and Little Kanawha Area Community Foundation affiliates recently announced an additional $8,950 in grants to organizations providing services in Ritchie, Doddridge, Wirt, Calhoun, and Gilmer counties.