Local non-profits receives grants from Upper Cumberland Community Foundation

Published 11:12 am Monday, April 8, 2024

: Upper Cumberland Community Foundation presented four $1,000 checks to local non-profit organizations on Friday at the Bell County Courthouse. Top row, from left: Dinah Pressnell, Friends of the Bell County Animal Shelter, and Jennifer Hash, Henderson Settlement After School Program; middle row: Jeannie Allen and Jessie Moberg, Crater of Hope; front row: foundation board members Colby Slusher and Celia Shoffner. Not pictured is the OYC Baptist Church. (Photos by Jay Compton)

By Jay Compton

The Upper Cumberland Community Foundation awarded $20,000 in grants throughout Bell, Clay, Knox, Laurel, and Whitley counties on Friday. Each county was allocated $4,000, and with those funds, awarded grants ranging from $500 to $2,500. The online grant application was open from January 1 through February 2.
The grants awarded in Bell County included:
• $1,000 to Friends of the Bell County Animal Shelter

$1,000 to Crater of Hope/Summer Youth Camp
$1,000 to Henderson Settlement After School Program
$1,000 to OYC Baptist Church’s Empowering Lives Program

The Upper Cumberland Community Foundation’s board members anticipate the positive impact that these grants will have in Bell County.

“I’m thrilled to participate with an organization that raises money to grant back to our most vulnerable Middlesboro residents,” Middlesboro Main Street Director Celia Shoffner said.

Bell County Chamber of Commerce Director Melissa Turner agreed.

“Bell County has so many worthy nonprofits, I’m looking forward to the day when we can support even more,” she said.

The Upper Cumberland Community Foundation is an Eastern Kentucky regional affiliate, working to enrich the quality of life for the citizens of Bell, Clay, Knox, Laurel, and Whitley Counties.

The foundation’s yearly grant fund is made possible because of money raised from their annual Poker Run. At this fundraising event, participants pay an entry fee to complete an exciting journey through Bell, Clay, Knox, Laurel, and Whitley counties, building a poker hand at each stop. Some of the participating vehicles include motorcycles, classic cars, jeeps, sports cars, and more. When the 2024 Poker Run is scheduled, an announcement will be made on Upper Cumberland Community Foundation’s Facebook page.

Donate to the Upper Cumberland Community Foundation at: http://bit.ly/UpperCumberlandCF