MASON CITY – The Cerro Gordo County Community Foundation (CGCCF) held its 2019 grant awards ceremony at the North Iowa Events Center on July 10, announcing the distribution of $117,358.50 in grants to 37 projects of organizations serving Cerro Gordo County.
“The impact these dollars will make will be felt by many in the community,” said Paula Petersburg, CGCCF committee chair. “Our communities will be strengthened by the programs these funds support and that’s the reason local committee members are excited to lead this effort.”
Members of the CGCCF Committee include: Shaun Arneson, Dalena Barz, Angela Determan (Secretary/Treasurer), John Drury, Mary Ingham, Julie Kaduce, Paula Petersburg (Chair), Marty Ramaekers, Adam Wedmore (Vice Chair) and Sterling Young.
Grant recipient organization, project the grant will fund, and grant amount are listed below by funding areas.
Art and Culture
- City of Mason City, MacNider Art Museum – STEAM Learning Center, $1,149
- Clear Lake Arts Council, Carpet Replacement Project, $1,900
- River City Sculptures on Parade, Permanent Pedestals, $958
- The Mason City Foundation, Educational Audio Visual Equipment, $1,270
Community Betterment
- City of Rockwell, Library – Update for Changing Times – Project B, $3,784
- City of Swaledale, Park Improvement – Picnic Tables and Bench, $3,700
- Healthy Harvest of North Iowa, Supplies for Farmers Markets in Cerro Gordo County, $1,150
- Mason City Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Vision North Iowa, $4,790
- North Iowa Events Center, Marion E. Olson Building ADA Bathroom Improvement Construction – Final Phase, $6,945
- VFW Post 733 San Juan-Marne, Banquet Table Replacement Project, $1,150
Education
- City of Mason City, Library – AWE Early Literacy and Afterschool Edge Computers for Youth, $1,200
- Iowa JAG, iJAG: Helping Transform Students of Promise into Tomorrow’s Leaders in Mason City, $2,874
- North Central Iowa Ag in the Classroom, Agriculture Education in Cerro Gordo County Schools, $1,435
- North Iowa Area Community College Foundation, SimMan ALS: Advancing Health Care Education in North Iowa, $3,832
Environment
- Association for the Preservation of Clear Lake, Clear Lake Water Quality Protection Project, $7,200
- Cerro Gordo County, Conservation Department – Lime Creek Nature Center Exhibit Renovation Project, $2,875
- Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Oak Savana Restoration, $1,900
Health
- Camp Tanglefoot, AEDs for Easy Access Throughout Camp Grounds, $1,839
- Cerro Gordo County Department of Public Health, Safe & Healthy Homes, $2,639
- City of Thornton, EMS Association – Mass Casualty Trauma Kits, $2,553
- Comprehensive Systems, Bike Therapy For Individuals with Special Needs, $1,437
- Elderbridge Agency on Aging, Material Aid, $1,900
- Mason City Family YMCA, Rock Steady Boxing – Mason City Safety and Equipment Update, $10,000
- Rockwell-Swaledale EMS, Communications Equipment, $4,246.50
Historic Preservation
- Pioneer Museum and Historical Society of North Iowa, Junction School House Climate Control, $1,200
- Wright on the Park, Historic Park Inn Hotel Roof Preservation, $5,000
Human Service
- City of Rockwell, Fire Department – Safety Equipment Replacement Kits & Helmets, $4,790
- City of Swaledale, Fire Department – SCBA, $6,146
- Epiphany Parish, Cerro Gordo County Adult Drug Treatment Court, $1,581
- Food Bank of Iowa, Feeding Cerro Gordo County , $2,395
- Francis Lauer Youth Services, Bedroom Basics, $1,180
- Habitat for Humanity of North Central Iowa, IT Software and Computers for Habitat, $1,900
- Mason City Senior Activity Center, Furnace and Air Conditioner Replacement, $4,790
- North Iowa CERT, Flood Equipment 2019, $2,395
- One Vision, Thrift Stores Equipment, $965
- Thornton Volunteer Fire Association, Thornton Fireman Turn Out Gear – Year 2, $4,790
- Ventura Firefighters Association, Jaws of Life, $7,500
Grants are awarded through CGCCF’s competitive grant process. Decisions on grant awards are determined by a local committee, which consists of volunteers from Cerro Gordo County. Grants may be awarded to projects in the program areas of: art and culture, community betterment, education, environment, health, historic preservation and human service. Grant applicants must be a 501(c)(3) designated organization (or government entity) serving Cerro Gordo County in order to be considered for funding.
The 2020 grant cycle opens January 1 with an application deadline of April 1, 2020. Grant guidelines and applications can be found at www.cerrogordoccf.org.
Adam Wedmore should be removed from the community foundation. He is only there to further his political career.
Mason City dolled out tax payer money to Matt for NIT.
Dear Globe Gazette worker, perhaps, if you had worked for a more reputable paper you wouldn’t be such a negative Nancy.
Dear Mat. Did you receive welfare from the city or not?
Dear Negative Nancy aka Glob Worker: This is not Matt, I can assure you. Since
when is a grant considered the same as welfare? No, unlike the Glob that has always published rubbish, NIT is actually trying to make a difference in this community. Thank you Matt for all you do.
Negative Nancy maybe you can get onboard the NIT train and turn your life around for the positive. : )
These comments really make me fear our society is doomed. The Grant’s are not coming from any gov organization, they are from the community foundation that receives dollars from gaming money. This is a competitive grant program which means the organizations were able to demonstrate how to do a project WITHOUT ASKING FOR TAXPAYER MONEY.
Great response to the ignorant ridiculous comments of those unsigned writers. Don’t they realize their mental health circumstances are treatable? And I bet one of the private nonprofit agencies they’re trashing can provide it!
The point of the comments are this: Why can’t they live within the budget they are allocated? And non-profit agency? Remember, they use all the taxpayer money they can get, and who really knows where it goes? And why can’t the gaming money be used for city projects? Road work, bridge repair, things that could save the taxpayer money. Bottom line. If these groups can’t live off the money are “given” (read charity) than perhaps they shouldn’t exist and the money be used for city related, safety or structural projects.
Grants are part of the monies that are “given” so they ARE living within their budget.
If they were managing their money correctly, they would not need the extra financial help. The things that the grants are used for just leave extra tax money for them to squander on lunches, brunches, or things they want to waste tax money on. That grant money should be turned in to the city to be used to benefit the city.
They either are expanding a program within their organization or they are redoing something that needs repairing. They asked for the money to help out not to subsidize themselves. Besides, it isn’t your money they are giving away. Why should it even concern you?
You don’t seem to understand, grants are part of their budget and part of the money that they are managing!
I do understand. Why are you concerned with how they spend their money?
What part of “grants” and private funding do you not comprehend?
There is no taxpayer money involved.
It is the donated private money that is theirs to do with as they so determine.
$302,400 in private donations, in 2018, were given to CGCCF with the sole purpose of helping other organizations & entities.
You have a very warped outlook on life as to helping others.
Maybe the city should apply for one of these grants just like the non-profits do.
To answer your question, in part, I worked for Parents United. We treated sexually abused children and their family members. (I might add a huge loss to our community.) While our Clientele have no limits educationally, socially, & financially, generally speaking, they were woefully lacking financially, benefit wise and you name it. If they did have healthcare coverage, slow to play insurance companies were a huge factor. We held all kinds of fundraisers, applied for grants, without doing these things we wouldn’t have lasted as long as we did. And, believe me the counseling staff, while some of the finest around,
were working for mere pennies on the dollar of what they could have been making in the private sector. A terrible loss to our community.
If these org. can not live on their budget, get someone in charge who can manage the money better. Museum, library, if they can’t make it on the taxpayer charity they receive, there is definitely a leadership problem here. If my water heater goes out, I can’t run to the city and ask them for money to help replace it. I find the money. Cut back on some things. Maybe these org. could get rid of some deadweight (excess employees) and try harder to use their money wisely.
Grants have been part of these organisation’s budgets for years so applying for grants is a big part of the budget process. Any organisation’s management that does not apply for grants is the one that should be replaced for not doing their job.
all kinds of things around town that need attention, let those with hands out do some work before their hands are filled up. project to clean up east park in effect now, let them go pick up trash, hours put in will determine how much they get. just like the food stamp people, drug test before you get the stamps, fail the test- no stamps. when easters was open I was behind a cpl in line who had a cart full, checked out and then the gal with the fancy $500 Harley coat on got out the food stamps and paid for it, then the beer and smokes were run thru and she pulled out a wad of $20 and paid for them, the guy in the $100 Harley leather beanie just stood there.
Giving money away to loser organizations that give nothing back. Libraries, museums, sculptures, VFW post, Elderbridge, wright on the park. I have no problem with fire departments or the north Iowa CERT, but not to the food bank for losers who already get snap benefits (our tax money) to supplement their being to lazy to get a real job. It’s getting to the point that all you have to do is hold out your hand and the government will gladly put money into it.
So because you do not enjoy the arts, culture or higher learning then these organisations should not benefit from grants? These organisations give back plenty to the youth & adults of our community if you have the ability to appreciate them. If you do not have the ability or enjoy these that is OK too buy why should they not be supported? Just because you don’t see the value?
These org. give back nothing to the community. They take taxpayers money and give back zero. We wonder why our taxes are so high. When you give money away to non productive or non essential areas, you are really stealing from the tax paying citizens of Mason City.
Are you kidding me? Sure, there will be people who use and abuse programs but the food bank, VFW, and Elderbridge? The elderly and disabled are living off as little as $790 a month. I have no idea who peed in your Cheerios today but you should calm down and THINK before you write crap. Especially, when you obviously don’t know or understand who and how these programs help our community.
How is One Vision, Healthy Harvest of Iowa, food bank of Iowa, river city sculptures, or camp tanglefoot doing anything for the taxpayer? How do they help the community? They allow people who are too lazy to get a job, too foolish to plan for their future, are so decadent they become drunks or drug abusers, to survive. Where we taxpayers have to work to earn our way, these people just skate thru life, living on the dole. I am beginning to believe that whoever is pro handing out these grants must be a receiver of one or more of them. After all, who like to see the gravy train end???
Why are you so concerned about what this organization does with their money? This is not taxpayer money, it’s not your money so who cares who they give it to. Obviously the committee for this organization is OK with giving grant money to these other nonprofits and I don’t really think they give a hoot what you think about it.
It’ not that they get the money, but rather why do they need it. If they can’t learn to live within their budget, they will just continue to overspend and expect grants like this to bail them out. It really boils down to poor money management by those in charge. Grants are nothing more than charity to those who are too lazy to take care of themselves. I’m finished. Some people were born with a charity attitude and feel better about themselves when they help out other charity cases. I take care of myself. Let the losers ask for the hand outs. good bye.
Dear Ebenezer Scrooge: You’re running your mouth with your comments but fail to post your name. Someday you will be old, and I hope somebody will think better of you. You are crazy if you don’t think these people didn’t set aside retirement funds. If you haven’t read for the last 10-15 yrs on how these funds have been raped by the dirty companies that set up management accounts for their employees or the state and feds just dropping and refusing to pay the retirements benefits your living with your head in the sand. Case in point, recently Cerro Gordo dropped it’s healthcare benefits for their retired folks. Our elderly and disabled deserve to be treated better. Things can can in a blink of an eye, no matter what you did or didn’t planned for. Do not look down your nose to others. We are all GODs children and our graves are all the same size.
I take care of myself. Let the losers ask for the handouts. Good bye.