The Parkersburg Area Community Foundation and Regional Affiliates (PACF) announced support for nonprofit organizations and charitable projects throughout the region through its spring Community Action Grant Program. The PACF awards grants from a variety of funds created by individuals, organizations, and area businesses to support critical community needs. Individuals and organizations who have Donor Advised Funds at the Foundation also partner to support projects each grant cycle, greatly expanding the Foundation’s grantmaking capacity.

The PACF’s grant awards this spring total $337,911. The Foundation’s three affiliates awarded an additional $9,940 in grants, including $5,000 from the Doddridge County Community Foundation (DCCF), $4,540 from the Ritchie County Community Foundation (RCCF), and $400 from the Little Kanawha Area Community Foundation (LKACF).

The largest grant in this cycle, $26,300, will assist The Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley with renovations to their facility on Dudley Avenue in Parkersburg, improving access and programming for people with disabilities. “Funds generously provided by the Parkersburg Area Community Foundation will assist in keeping the infrastructure of The Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley strong,” said Liz Ford Executive Director of The Arc. “Our facilities need maintenance and upgrades. Work to be undertaken includes exterior work to help keep moisture out, painting the building, upgrades to the parking lot, and installation of an elevator. With better access to the upstairs area, The Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley will increase the number of educational and advocacy programs in our community.”

To be considered for a Community Action Grant, an applicant must be a private organization, 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).

The spring 2022 Parkersburg Area Community Foundation & Regional Affiliates grant recipients are:

• Actor’s Guild of Parkersburg - $19,000 to replace the grand drape to improve safety.
• Adolescent Health Initiative Region V - $10,000 to support the STARS program, which addresses mental health and builds leadership skills among middle and high school students in the region.
• Blennerhassett Historical Foundation - $3,518 for a landscaping beautification project at the Blennerhassett Island Manson.
• Cairo Volunteer Fire Department - $12,000 to upgrade portable radios to improve communication among firefighters.
• Calhoun County Historical Society - $4,820 to install awnings on the history museum building.
• Calhoun County Family Resource Network - $9,800 to install a kitchen to enhance food access programs.
• City of Spencer - $9,999 to replace windows and lighting in the east wing of the Armory Facility.
• City of Williamstown - $250 to support the installation of an electronic bulletin board to provide the public with information.
• Doddridge County Parks and Recreation Commission - $15,000 to support Phase Two of the pool renovation project.
• Downtown PKB - $5,750 to support the Point Park summer concert series.
• Fourth Circuit Public Defender Corporation - $8,700 to provide transportation to clients with substance use disorders to and from treatment facilities.
• Gilmer County Historical Society - $1,000 to replace locks on the society’s buildings.
• Greater Parkersburg Convention and Visitors Bureau - $9,082 to support the reestablishment of community gardens at the organization’s new facility.
• Harrisville Volunteer Fire Department - $6,620 to purchase equipment for wildland firefighting and for search and rescue calls.
• Hopewell Health Centers - $1,300 to support summer camps for youth.
• Horizons Center for Independent living - $11,500 to renovate the kitchen in the group home.
• Humane Society of Parkersburg - $5,000 to adapt a new cargo van to safely transport animals.
• Latrobe Street Mission - $2,850 to develop a computer lab for clients.
• Marietta College - $14,500 to support the summer Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) camp.
• Mid-Ohio Valley Adult Drug Court - $11,500 to provide assistance to clients in need of dentures.
• Parents and Friends of the Hearing Impaired - $3,400 to provide hearing aids to low income deaf or hard of hearing persons.
• Parkersburg Art Center - $15,000 to enhance the facility’s security system.
• Pleasant Hill Elementary School - $500 to purchase sets of chapter books and novels for the 3^rd and 4^th grade classrooms.
• Ritchie County Family Resource Network - $11,220 to support Packs of Plenty, which provides food to children in the Ritchie County school system for weekends and school holidays.
• Roane County 4-H Leaders Association - $8,000 to support the Farm to School program through the development of school gardens.
• Roane County Commission - $13,550 to construct public restroom facilities at Camp Sheppard.
• SW Resources, Inc. - $16,000 to provide employment training programs for individuals in recovery from substance use disorders.
• The Amputee Center - $8,500 to purchase exercise equipment and additional adaptive equipment.
• The Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley - $26,300 to renovate the facility to improve services to individuals with disabilities.
• Wasco, Inc. - $1,000 to support the purchase of office equipment.
• West Virginia Health Right - $7,000 to support mobile dental services in Roane County.
• West Virginia University Extension/Family Nutrition Program - $9,500 to support pop-up farmers markets at Wood County schools.
• Westbrook Health Services - $14,442 to install gas generators in residential homes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Williamstown Middle/High School - $7,300 to install a projector system in the newly constructed auditorium.
• Wood County 4-H Camp - $16,200 for facility improvements at the camp.
• Wood County Sports Association - $7,500 to replace fencing and repair parking lots.
• WVU Foundation/Children’s Vision Rehabilitation Program - $5,250 to support clinics to assess and assist children with low vision in the PACF service area.
• YMCA of Parkersburg - $15,000 to install LED lighting through the facility.