In a Special Meeting last night, the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council voted to award Neighborhood Purpose Grants to seven local non-profit organizations, in amounts ranging from $500 to $1,250. According to the GWNC’s grant committee chair Julie Stromberg, the GWNC received 10 applications for this most recent grant cycle, and eight of those were recommended for awards. (One of the others, Stromberg said, did not meet the grant program’s stated goals, and one did not fit the current cycle’s spending timeline but could be re-submitted during a future application window.) Also, while eight grants were recommended by the committee for funding, a clerical error left one – for the EnrichLA school garden organization – off last night’s special meeting agenda, so a board vote on that recommendation will be taken at a future GWNC board meeting. The grants awarded last night included:
- $500 to the Anderson Munger YMCA to purchase blood pressure self-monitoring wrist cuffs for the YMCA’s Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring program, which helps program participants consistently monitor and track their own blood pressure.
- $750 to the First in Fire Foundation to purchase a refrigerator for a local firehouse for the “Emergency Preparedness Firehouse Freezers and Pantries” program. The program helps keep firehouses stocked with nourishing food for firefighters during emergencies such as wildfire season.
- $600 to the Friends of Wilshire Library, to purchase cameras and other equipment that will allow the library to continue hybrid live/virtual programming such as movie nights and its popular “Cookies & Comics” monthly graphic novel book club, which hast been meeting online since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- $1,250 to Hope-Net, to purchase food such as fresh produce, lean proteins, grains, and legumes to feed the homeless and others in need in our community.
- $500 to the Open Arms Pantry, to help provide things like household essentials (detergent and cleaning supplies), diapers, feminine hygiene products, food, groceries and other resources for residents that are experiencing financial, homeless and or disability crises.
- $1,250 to St. Vincent’s Meals on Wheels, to provide meals to homebound seniors in the Greater Wilshire area.
- $500 to the Ebell of Los Angeles, to fund its June 12 Doors Open event, which will provide behind-the-scenes tours, talks and exhibits as part of a statewide program sponsored by the California Preservation Foundation. The event will “educate the public about historic preservation and Greater Wilshire corridor history, and will celebrate the trailblazing women of Los Angeles who have been connected with the [Ebell] building.”
Neighborhood purpose grants are made by Los Angeles’ local neighborhood councils at least once a year (and sometimes more often) to help support neighborhood-serving non-profit organizations and their various community benefit activities. For more information, see https://greaterwilshire.org/npg/. The applications the GWNC considered during this grant cycle are available here.
