Six Kansas Nonprofits Dedicated to Hunger Relief and Community Engagement Recognized with $180,000 in Grants
- Six nonprofits in Kansas received Walmart Foundation grants
- $180,000 in grants will fund a variety of impactful programs in the areas of family support, disaster preparedness and career opportunity
Topeka, Kan. – March, 2018 – When it comes to fighting hunger and supporting those in need, results are best achieved by the tireless dedication of local individuals and organizations with a desire to make a difference. Recently, the philanthropic initiatives of six Kansas nonprofits were recognized through a grant from the Walmart Foundation.
“These Walmart Foundation grant recipients have demonstrated a tireless commitment to helping those in need and have strengthened our local communities,” said Terry Nannie, Walmart regional general manager. “At Walmart, we are continually inspired and motivated by the amazing work of the nonprofit organizations in the communities we serve and we thank them for all that they do.”
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation look for organizations that address the needs of the communities they serve and make a significant social impact on a local and state level. The following nonprofits received a Walmart Foundation grant to fund vital local programs:
- Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey (KCFAA) received a $45,000 grant to support its KCFAA education programs, which teaches more than 25,000 young people critical life skills. The programs are built on the philosophy that the skills needed to learn dance are the same skills needed for broader success in life: creativity, communication, collaboration, critical-thinking, hard work, and focus.
- Kansas Society for Children with Challenges received a $25,000 grant to purchase medical equipment for special needs children. Since 1925, the organization has reached out to low-income Kansas families with handicapped or disabled children who have special medical equipment needs. The grant will be used to make financial commitments to families in various Kansas counties to fund the acquisition of medical equipment items, such as a gait trainer, cranial remolding helmet, iPads (for autistic children), wheelchair ramp and adaptive strollers, among others.
- The Manufacturing Institute received a $35,000 grant to support its Heroes MAKE America program, which is an accelerated training program to assist transitioning service members into rewarding careers in manufacturing. The Heroes MAKE America program provides veterans with the industry specific skills and certifications they need to succeed in the manufacturing workforce.
- Thrive Allen County, Inc. received a $25,000 grant to support its Taking Shelter program, which helps rural Kansas residents prepare for storms. Southeast Kansas is famously the center of “tornado alley,” but not every community has early-warning sirens, especially crucial in isolated towns without cellphone service. The grant will be used to install sirens in Carlyle and Petrolia.
- USO Fort Riley received a $25,000 grant to support its USO Pathfinder Program, which will assist transitioning service members obtain the skills and resources they need as they transition back into the civilian workforce following their military careers.
- Women’s Employment Network received a $25,000 grant to support their signature programming, which includes employment preparation and career transition training, skill-building workshops, direct special assistance, alumnae professional development/outreach, financial coaching and credit building and traveling workshops.
“Thanks to the Walmart Foundation grant, the Kansas Society for Children with Challenges is able to expand our financial assistance to qualified low income Kansas families with handicapped children needing specialized medical equipment,” said Steven Woods, executive director of the Kansas Society for Children with Challenges. “What we do is unique and we are often able to fill funding gaps when no other agency or program is available to help a family in need.”
In FY17, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation gave more than $11.58 million in cash and in-kind contributions to support nonprofit organizations and programs in Kansas focused on fighting hunger and other needs specific to many Kansas communities.
For more information about Walmart Foundation programs, please visit http://giving.walmart.com/apply-for-grants/spark-communities.
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About Philanthropy at Walmart
By using our strengths to help others, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation create opportunities for people to live better every day. We have stores in 28 countries, employing more than 2.2 million associates and doing business with thousands of suppliers who, in turn, employ millions of people. We are helping people live better by accelerating upward job mobility and economic development for the retail workforce; addressing hunger and making healthier, more sustainably-grown food a reality; and building strong communities where we operate and inspiring our associates to give back. Whether it is helping to lead the fight against hunger in the United States with $2 billion in cash and in-kind donations or supporting Women’s Economic Empowerment through a series of grants totaling $10 million to the Women in Factories training program in Bangladesh, China, India and Central America, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are not only working to tackle key social issues, we are also collaborating with others to inspire solutions for long-lasting systemic change. To learn more about Walmart’s giving, visit http://www.foundation.walmart.com.
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, over 260 million customers and members visit our more than 11,600 stores under nearly 60 banners in 28 countries and eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2017 revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart.
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