Warren Hometown grants are awarded

Shown in the photo are individuals from the First Baptist Church of Warren. Pictured on the front row, left to right, are Kim Park, church member; Ashton Ousley, church administrative assistant and grant writer; Steve Park, church member; Dawn Collins, Salamonie School principal; Bridget Swaidner, Salamonie School teacher and Brady Smekens and Miranda Bolinger, Community Foundation volunteers. Second row, from left, include Rusty Strickler, First Baptist Church of Warren, pastor; Martina Cocklin, Salamonie School administrative assistant and Christy Neuenschwander, Salamonie School teacher.

Shown in the photo are individuals from the Boys and Girls Club of Warren. Pictured on the front row, from left, are Lilly Forney, Nora Forney, Reed Shafer, Mason Shafer, William Dalrymple, Carter Scalf, Cooper Ralston, Madolyn Hunnicutt and Zane Fortney. Pictured in the middle row, from left, are Claire Fortney, Lucie Dalrymple, Samantha Zavattaro, Lexi Zavattaro and Elijah Richards. Pictured in the back row, from left, include Community Foundation Volunteers Brady Smekens and Miranda Bolinger, Boys and Girls Club executive director Mandy Reber and Warren coordinator Brooklynn Gard. Walking through the door is Blaine Brown.

Shown in the photo are individuals from Historic Warren, from left, include Historic Warren board members Jeff Souder and Neil Laymon; Jessica Sunderman, vice president; LeAnn Buzzard, president; Community Foundation volunteer Brady Smekens and Historic Warren secretary/treasurer Becky Souder.

The Warren Hometown Grant Committee is pleased to announce the following 2023 grant recipients:

First Baptist Church of Warren. As the Little Rebel Store at Salamonie Elementary School opened this past spring, new clothing and hygiene items will be restocked for the 2023-2024 school year.

Boys & Girls Club of Huntington County. With the recent transition to Tower Park, the Club will use these grant funds for purchasing the necessary furniture and technology to complete the space.

Historic Warren. The old night deposit box in front of The Exchange will soon be repurposed with a community bulletin board that keeps residents and visitors informed on things happening in Warren.

The Hometown Grant is a program of the Community Foundation of Huntington County. Created in 2022, the program dedicates grant funding to a small town and empowers a committee of local citizens to make the ultimate funding decisions. The program is currently being piloted in Warren with the hopes of expanding to more small towns in the future.

“We love the Warren community and will continue to invest in its future,” stated Matt Ditzler, Community Foundation executive director. “We could not have imagined a better place to pilot this program.”

In addition to the dedicated grant funding, the Community Foundation is offering a $1 for $1 match on any contributions made to the Warren Hometown Endowment Fund. This fund was created as a new way for people to support the Town of Warren and ensure the growth of the Hometown Grant program. If you are interested in supporting the program, please contact Matt Ditzler at (260) 356-8878 or matt@huntingtonccf.org to learn more.

Updates on past grant recipients include Historic Warren recently completed their tree mural on the southwest side of the Exchange Building on 2^nd Street and the Friends of the Warren Library continue to work towards refurbishing their library elevator.

If you would like more information about this topic, please call Janet Branham, Office & Communications Manager, at (260) 356-8878 or janet@huntingtonccf.org.