The DeKalb County Community Foundation is pleased to award $3,570 in Promise Grants to benefit seven local organizations for a variety of programs and projects.

Pictured: A 2020 Promise Grant to Neighbors’ House was used to purchase educational magazines for youth in the community.

2020 Promise Grants awarded:

• Barb Food Mart – $430 to provide free meal kits to local families
• DeKalb County Community Gardens – $168 to provide visual aids for the sensory garden to assist with literacy and sensory engagement for preschool students.
• DeKalb Public Library – $392 to purchase books for underserved children
• Kishwaukee Family YMCA – $400 to purchase stem activity kits for children
• Neighbors’ House – $500 to purchase educational magazines
• Pushing Together NFP – $800 to support a youth development and ESL program
• RAMP – $880 to assist in a pre-employment transition services for youth with disabilities

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.

“A distinctive element of this grant program is the committee who meets to discuss and recommend funding,” said Tiffany McQueen Lewis, Community Foundation Grants Director. “This committee is made of minority community members who offer unique insights on marginalized and underserved populations in DeKalb County.”

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 a Promise Grants Fund 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.