KING CITY — Southern Monterey County Foundation has awarded its third year of grants totaling $15,000 for 11 nonprofit organizations serving South County residents, bringing its overall contribution to local communities to more than $50,000 since 2014.
The Foundation, guided by an advisory board of local residents, is an affiliate fund of the Community Foundation for Monterey County and raises money to provide grants to strengthen communities from King City to areas south.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to support the nonprofits making a positive difference in the South County area. Together, we can make a long-lasting impact,” said Robert Cullen, board chairman of the Southern Monterey County Foundation, in a news release.
For the year 2016, the following nonprofit organizations received grants:
• Children’s Hospice and Palliative Care Coalition: to increase access to medical care for children with life-threatening conditions;
• City of King: to support the design and installation of a citywide security camera system to increase public safety;
• Community Food Pantry of King City: to serve hungry members of the community;
• Girls Inc. of the Central Coast: for Growing Together, a program to increase positive communication between young girls and their parents or guardians at elementary and middle schools in King City;
• King City in Bloom: for city clean-up and beautification projects to promote a healthy quality of life for King City residents and hometown pride;
• Legal Services for Seniors: for no-cost legal services for Southern Monterey County seniors
• Monterey County Agriculture and Rural Life Museum: to support the third annual Fourth Grade History Jamboree, a two-day program full of art, history and music;
• Monterey County Pops!: for the 2017 Veteran’s Day Concert at the Stanton Theater;
• Rancho Cielo: to provide ongoing case management for South County residency in transitional housing;
• San Antonio Elementary School: for the purchase of iPads to implement STEM programs for K-8 students in the San Antonio Valley, Bryson-Hesperia and Fort Hunter Liggett area; and
• Sol Treasures: SOL-O Youth Strings Orchestra and music instruction, a free after-school music program.
Southern Monterey County Foundation (SMCF) — founded in 2014 by local residents — is a permanent endowed resource for South County that provides annual competitive grants to nonprofits. According to SMCF, the advisory board reviews all applications and makes decisions on where funding will have the greatest positive impact.
The Foundation is supported by the Founding Family, 19 individuals and businesses who have pledged to build the endowment and help SMCF to award grants in its first five years.
For more information about SMCF or to contribute, call 831-375-9712 or visit cfmco.org/smcf.
