The DeKalb County Community Foundation is pleased to award $3,517 in Promise Grants to benefit seven local organizations for a variety of programs and projects.

Promise Grants provide support to charitable organizations addressing the needs of the underserved and often dismissed populations in DeKalb County. The purpose of the Promise Grant program is to inspire, educate, and empower individuals who may experience extraordinary challenges due to their ethnicity, immigration status, and abilities. Support for this grant program comes from two funds at the Community Foundation: The Promise Fund/El Fondo de la Promesa inspires the community to build leadership skills and empower the underserved population within DeKalb County and The Wiegele Family Early Childhood Literacy Fund supports early childhood literacy for underserved populations with very young children.

2019 Promise Grants:

• Barb Food Mart – $362 to provide ready to make meal kits
• Children’s Learning Center Inc. – $850 to supply winter clothing and other items for children
• DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau – $515 to purchase supplies for a play therapy room for youth
• Farmworker and Landscaper Advocacy Project – $250 to provide supplies for a dual citizenship assistance event
• Kishwaukee Education Consortium – $200 to purchase books reflecting more diversity
• RAMP – $500 to assist in a pre-employment transition services for youth with disabilities
• Sycamore Education Foundation – $840 to support an early childhood literacy program

Applications for Promise Grants are available starting in October of each year and due by mid-November.

Join us in providing opportunity and inspiration to the underserved in DeKalb County. A gift to the Promise Fund Grants will allow even greater support in the future. Donations are accepted at dekalbccf.org/donate, in person, or by mail. If you have questions or wish to discuss your charitable interest in the community, please contact Executive Director Dan Templin, at 815-748-5383 or dan@dekalbccf.org.

Pictured: Representatives of the KEC Early Childhood Education Program receive a $200 grant to assist in upgrading the current selection of children’s books to include those reflecting more diversity. Thank you to Rob Cook of the Promise Grants committee for hand delivering the check.