Spring 2021 Grants

$2,000 to the Boy Scouts of America for the Muskegon County Free Scouting event, which will give local kids the opportunity to spend an entire day outdoors at the Gerber Scout Reservation in late spring or late summer. Activities at the event will include crafts, hikes, a hands-on STEM activity, and other activities utilizing the expansive camp.

$5,000 to Girls on the Run to support Empowering Girls, Changing Futures. The GOTR program includes an 8-week course leading up to the race, aiming to help girls with self-esteem, confidence and nurture physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Funding from the YAC will cover new shoes and other supplies or materials needed.

$2,300 to Harbor Hospice Foundation for Camp Courage, an annual three-day overnight summer camp that provides a supportive environment where boys and girls ages 6 to 19 who are struggling with the death of someone close come together in meaningful ways to talk, to grieve and to remember the person they miss so deeply.

$10,000 to Planned Parenthood of Michigan for their Making Proud Choices program, a 10-hour comprehensive, evidence-based, sexuality education program designed to give youth the information, skills, and tools they need to reduce their risk of unintended pregnancy, HIV, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Fall 2020 Grants

$9,165 to The Diatribe for their program Poetry Empowered, which helps students develop key life skills, social awareness, and positive self-expressions. Instructor and local poet Ebony “Gemini” Davis will lead a 9-week course for 90 students at the Muskegon Community Education Center.

$4,675 to Empowered Kids for their GoPro and Grow program. Empowered Kids will work with student producers to create a series of 50 or more 5-minute video modules that are designed to build resilience and teach students skills in dealing with social and mental health issues.

$2,500 to Joyful Strides Foundation for equine therapy scholarships, treating youth who are recovering from trauma or other emotional difficulties. One of very few equine therapy options in the county, Joyful Strides’ participants often gain leadership skills, self-regulation and physical strengthening.

$2,500 to Hospice of Michigan for grief support services for youth. Hospice of Michigan offers bereavement counseling for youth under the age of 18 whose families have used Hospice services, including personalized options like group support services and dealing with grief during the holidays.

$1,500 to Junior Achievement of the Michigan Great Lakes, in partnership with the Boys & Girls Club of the Muskegon Lakeshore, for career readiness programs. Together, they plan to deliver two educational programs around career readiness and workforce preparation to approximately 50 local teens.

Grant History