Community Grants Cycle Awards Record $768,041 in Local Grants, including $30,000 for Access to Health Services
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND – Bainbridge Community Foundation’s 2024 Community Grants Cycle (CGC) awarded a record-setting amount of $768,041 in 74 grants to local nonprofits, which greatly exceeds the previous high mark of $605,975 awarded last year. Total funding since the CGC began in 2005 is more than $5.2 million—and almost every year the CGC reaches a new record, which reflects the values and generosity of this community.
Peninsula Community Health Services (PCHS) requested $12,000 to help establish a primary clinic on Bainbridge Island. Access to health services has been identified as a critical need by our community, and finding local primary care is extremely challenging, according to research conducted by the Foundation. For that reason, through the Community Grants Cycle, BCF awarded $30,000 to PCHS, significantly more than the original $12,000 requested amount. This included an additional $8,000 through the Klasky Collaboration & Innovation Award.
“BCF allocates money toward all sectors, and has a deep knowledge of community need. We all know that there has been a shortage of primary care services on the Island. PCHS is going to fill that gap with its new primary care clinic, and BCF, through its thoughtful approach to grantmaking, based on extensive local research, is helping to make it happen! I’m proud to have been a part of that process,” stated volunteer Wendy O’Connor, who interviewed PCHS during this year’s CGC.
BCF was proud to provide special funding to five organizations for prioritizing Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Social Justice (IDEAS) as part of their work. This year’s IDEAS Award went to organizations that made extra efforts to make their programs and services more accessible and inclusive. While 49 of the 74 applications this year identified their work as related to IDEAS, only five organizations received the award—recognizing nonprofits at different stages in their IDEAS journey. These organizations were Bainbridge Schools Foundation, Kitsap Homes of Compassion, Living Arts Cultural Heritage, Neurodiverse Connections, and Vitalize Kitsap in recognition of their efforts to serve all the members of our community. Their applications included providing Neurodiversity education and NeuroEmpathy workshops for local schools, supporting social-emotional curriculum at public schools, and empowering teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Each nonprofit received $2,000 as part of their grant award for their IDEAS efforts, with a total distribution of $10,000 in BCF IDEAS awards.
“The impact nonprofits have on this community is profound,” explained Ellin Spenser, who helped found BCF and is a current BCF Board Member. “They ensure everyone can access a quality life here, and the Community Grants Cycle helps support those efforts by providing financial resources to make programs and services affordable in all sectors—from arts & culture programming to childcare.” BCF’s CGC was designed to be a community-driven effort. This year, 55 volunteers from the community approved 74 of the 76 applications—10 more applications compared to 2023, and 13 that were approved for the first time in CGC history.
BCF is thankful to be supporting such innovative and thoughtful programming, and even more grateful for the support we find in our neighbors.
If you would like to learn more about BCF’s Community Grants Cycle, please contact Debbie Kuffel at debbie@bainbridgecf.org.
See graph below for the breakdown of funding by sector:
Health, housing, and human services received almost half of the 2024 CGC funds.
See graph below to see how BCF’s CGC has grown since inception:
Since this program began in 2005, BCF has awarded more than $5.2 million total through its Annual Community Grants Cycle.
