July 10, 2014

Cameron Foundation awards nearly $2.3 million in new grant funding

The Cameron Foundation has approved grant funding to 35 nonprofit organizations serving the Tri-Cities area. The awards total $2,297,264.50 and were decided at the Foundation’s June Board meeting. “The number of grants and total amount committed is higher than what was typical in past years,” noted Grants Committee Chair Cleveland A. Wright, explaining, “This is because it’s the first time the Foundation has made awards according to its new schedule of two grant cycles annually, versus deciding on grants three times per year.”

Many of the grants this cycle reaffirm the priority that the Foundation places on supporting health and human service organizations. Although the largest award this cycle was a $347,000 grant to Central Virginia Health Services for the Appomattox Area Health and Wellness Center in Petersburg, Board Chair Larry C. Tucker also noted that two of the June grantees were facilities providing health services to rural corridors of the Foundation’s service area. Both organizations are first-time recipients of Cameron funding. “The $100,000 grant to Southern Dominion Health System will enhance behavioral health services in Dinwiddie County by helping to establish an integrated mental and behavioral health program at the Dinwiddie Health Center location. The $15,000 in funding to Horizon Health Services will go toward infrastructure improvements at Waverly Medical Center in Sussex County,” he said. The Cameron Foundation’s catchment area encompasses the Tri-Cities and surrounding counties, stretching from Dinwiddie County across Sussex County.

Foundation President J. Todd Graham also remarked that several grant awards “recognize the importance of preserving the rich history and architecture that this region offers to visitors and residents.” He called particular attention to the two Sacred Landmarks grants that were approved. This is the Foundation’s first cycle to consider such requests since the new initiative was announced late last year. Eligible congregations may apply for this grant opportunity to maintain and preserve their physical facilities that meet criteria as historic religious buildings. The organizations receiving Sacred Landmark grants in the June cycle include Second Presbyterian Church in Petersburg to repair brownstone at three entrance doors of the church building as well as St. John’s Episcopal Church in Hopewell for roof repairs and guttering to offset current water intrusion.

The full list of June grants includes:

Alzheimer’s Association – $25,000
Battersea Foundation – $125,000
Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond – $60,000
Central Virginia Health Services – $347,000
Chesterfield CASA, Inc. – $20,000
Chesterfield Colonial Heights Alliance for Social Ministry (CCHASM) – $25,000
City of Petersburg Department of Planning and Community Development – $135,236.50
CultureWorks – $25,000
Downtown Churches United, Inc. – $56,000
Equal Justice America – $8,000
Family Lifeline – $50,000
Goodwill of Central Virginia – $40,000
GReat Aspirations Scholarship Programs, Inc. (GRASP) – $10,000
Historic Petersburg Foundation, Inc. – $83,450
Hopewell Food Pantry – $30,000
Hopewell-Prince George Healthy Families – $28,051
Horizon Health Services, Inc. – $15,000
National Alliance on Mental Illness of Central Virginia (NAMI) – $7,418
Petersburg Area Art League – $15,000
Petersburg Health Department – $192,000
Preservation Virginia – $26,250
project:Homes – $25,000
Second Presbyterian Church – $25,000
Smart Beginnings Hopewell-Prince George – $50,000
Southern Dominion Health System, Inc. – $100,000
Southern Initiative of the Algebra Project, Inc. – $50,000
Southside Community Partners – $60,000
Southside Health Education Foundation – $60,000
St. John’s Episcopal Church – $25,000
St. Joseph’s Villa – $57,000
Sussex County Department of Social Services – $33,000
Virginia LISC – $98,500
Virginia’s Gateway Region – $275,000
Willcox Watershed Conservancy – $50,000
YMCA of Greater Richmond – $65,359