Lake County Community Foundation honors 2014 grant recipients

The Lake County Community Foundation, an affiliate of The Chicago Community Trust, announced $153,000 in grants to local nonprofit organizations serving the urgent needs of the most vulnerable individuals and families in the county.

The following grant recipients have demonstrated exceptional commitment to making Lake County a better place to live, work and raise a family in the areas designated to have the most impact on the county's current needs.

2014 Grant Recipients:

• A Safe Place ($25,000 category: Efficient Governance - Pursue Coordinated Investments)

• Beacon Place ($5,000 category: Human Capital - Capacity Building)

• Hanul Family Alliance ($5,000 category: Human Capital - Capacity Building)

• The Alliance for Human Services ($75,000 category: Human Capital - Sustain the Health and Human Services System)

• Waukegan Park District ($2,000 category: Human Capital - Sustain the Health and Human Services System)

• Waukegan Public Library ($20,000 category: Human Capital - Improve Education and Workforce Training)

• UChicago Impact ($10,500 category: Human Capital - Improve Education and Workforce Training)

• Ounce of Prevention Fund ($10,000 category: Human Capital - Improve Education and Workforce Training)

• YouthBuild Lake County ($15,000 category: Human Capital - Improve Education and Workforce Training)

• Zion Benton Children's Service ($5,000 category: Human Capital - Capacity Building)

• Zion Benton Elementary District 6 ($21,000 category: Human Capital - Improve Education and Workforce Training)

"Our grant-making strategy allows the foundation to make the critical strides necessary on the issues challenging our community," A. Stewart Kerr, chair of the foundation's board of directors, said. "This year's recipients have brought greater awareness and impact to the various causes as well as a unique environment of collaboration among the nonprofits we support."

Leaders from the organizations gathered at Tempel Farms in Old Mill Creek to network with each other and forge stronger relationships among nonprofit human services providers in Lake County.

"It's so important for these organizations to connect and find ways to work together," Maggie Morales, Manager of Community Engagement for The Lake County Community Foundation, said. "Convening the very people who are actively working to serve Lake County's most vulnerable populations is such a large part of what the foundation strives to do, it's at the core of our mission."

The issues surrounding the increase in suburban poverty have reached a crescendo. For nearly a decade, The Lake County Community Foundation has been on the cutting edge of addressing these issues, and it is proud to promote collaboration among nonprofit human services providers in Lake County, enabling the delivery of innovative, sustainable programs and accessible services to the county's most vulnerable residents.

For information about the foundation's funding priorities, visit www.lakecountycf.org/apply/home.