Gesa CU Awards Over $500,000 in Grants to Support Local Heroes

RICHLAND, WASH. (December 5, 2022) Gesa, a community-focused credit union, today announced the recipients of its Local Heroes Grant Program, which provides grant funds to organizations that support Local Heroes within the community. In the program’s second year, Gesa will award more than $500,000 in grants to 43 organizations across Washington state. The top earning organizations will receive upwards of $50,000 to support their individual needs.

Gesa’s Local Heroes Grant Program provides grants to organizations in the state of Washington that support any of Gesa’s outlined Local Heroes populations, including firefighters, law enforcement, teachers, healthcare workers, and veterans. This year’s recipients were selected by the Gesa Community Foundation.

“These Local Heroes make our communities across Washington state better and we’re honored to support them,” said Angie Brotherton, Executive Director of the Gesa Community Foundation. “The applications we received were truly inspiring, and we were moved by each group’s commitment to serving our communities. We’re very appreciative of the selfless work that these organizations do and we’re thankful for their work.”

Recipients of this year’s Local Heroes Grant Program include: 
 

Benton City
•    Benton County Fire Protection District #2

Burien
•    St. Anne Hospital Foundation 

Chelan
•    Chelan Fire & Rescue 

College Place
•    College Place Fire Department
 

East Wenatchee
•    Kenroy Elementary School

Eltopia
•    Service Peace Warriors 

Kennewick 
•    Tri-City Metro Drug Taskforce 
•    Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association Chapter 11-6
•    Therapeutic Riding of Tri-Cities 

Lynnwood
•    Meadowdale High School

Moses Lake
•    Moses Lake Police Department 

Pasco
 
•    Tri-Cities Diversity & Inclusion Council
•    Columbia Basin College Foundation
•    Young Officers on Fire

Poulsbo
•    Martha & Mary

Prosser
•    Friends of Disabled Veterans 
 

Richland
 
•    STEM Like Me! 
•    Mid-Columbia Ballet 
•    Richland Firefighters Community Outreach Program  

Seattle
 
•    Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra 
•    Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
•    Seattle Public Schools 
•    Medic One Foundation
•    Dress for Success Seattle
 
Shoreline
•    Ridgecrest Elementary School Library 

Silverdale
•    Greater Kitsap Chamber of Commerce
Spokane
 
•    Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture 
•    Mead High School 
•    The ISAAC Foundation 
•    Free Rein Therapeutic Riding 
•    Whitworth University Military & Veterans Resource Center 

Sunnyside
•    Sunnyside Police Department

Union Gap
•    Union Gap Police Department 
 
Walla Walla
 
•    City of Walla Walla Fire Department 
•    Walla Walla County Fire District #4
•    Columbia Walla Walla County Fire District 2 
•    Volunteers Love Serving Veterans  

Wenatchee
 
•    Chelan County Mountain Rescue
•    Alatheia Therapeutic Riding Center
•    Wenatchee Rescue Mission 
West Richland
 
•    William Wiley Elementary School
•    Leona Libby Middle School 

Yakima
•    Yakima County Fire District #4

With every swipe of a Local Heroes co-branded Gesa Visa® Debit Card, Gesa members earn funds designated for grants in that card’s Local Heroes category. Funds accumulate over the course of a year and are disbursed annually. 

For more information about Gesa’s Local Heroes Grant Program, including eligibility requirements, visit https://www.gesa.com/category/local-heroes/. 

Gesa Credit Union is Washington’s second largest credit union with over $5.5 billion in assets and is over 285,000 members strong. Gesa is a full-service financial institution that offers a complete array of consumer, mortgage, and business products and services. Headquartered in Richland, Washington, Gesa operates 28 branches, including three loan centers, two full-service student-operated campus branches at Washington State University, and 12 student-operated high school branches across Washington state. The Gesa Community Foundation, established in 2022, further supports Gesa’s ongoing commitment to local communities and charitable giving, which includes support for schools, Local Heroes groups and community organizations through its Affinity Debit Card Program, as well as through its annual youth scholarships, and free financial and educational resources available to members and the general public. For more information, visit gesa.com.