Rotary Charities has awarded over a quarter of million dollars in grants to projects that that will implement the Grand Vision.

"We awarded 22 grants during our last grant round," said Rotary Charities Executive Director Marsha Smith. "Of those, seven were directly related to implementation of the Grand Vision…when evaluating grants, we look for proposals that fit our mission. Specifically, the proposal must meet an identified community need or enhance the quality of life for citizens in our region. All of the successful grantees demonstrated that clearly and aligned with Grand Vision guiding principles," she said.

Projects awarded grants:

• Purchase of land to increase public access at the Acme Shoreline (Acme Township $75,000)
• Improvements to the Greilickville Harbor Park (Elmwood Township, $30,000)
• Construction of a county-wide digital mapping and database for use in geographic information system (Kalkaska county, $25,000)
• Expanded implementation of New Designs for Growth and research on growth and investment (NW Michigan Council of Governments, $35,000)
• Creation of Environmental education programs for students in K-12 (Grand Traverse Conservation District, $45,000)
• Implementation of the "FarmAbility" program to educate and preserve farmland in Leelanau County (Leelanau Conservancy $30,000)
• Organizational capacity building in the areas of fundraising, marketing, and communications (Watershed Center Grand Traverse Bay, $40,000)

"The ultimate goal of the Grand Vision is to create prosperity by making this region an even better place to live, work, and play. By providing support for the Watershed Center, we will be better positioned to provide leadership for key environmental issues in the years to come," stated Watershed Executive Director Andy Knott. "This grant helps move the whole region closer to realizing the Grand Vision."

Ed Downing, Board President of Rotary Charities, recently discussed the importance of responding to the need offered by over 15,000 residents of the Grand Traverse region. "The Rotary Charities Board has always focused on community need when making decisions about what to fund," said Downing. "One result of the Grand Vision was to build a strong case for support of various programs and organizations whose work ties directly to that vision."

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Photo: Ellsworth, Michigan by norjam8.