Missoula Federal Credit Union Awards $20K in Grants to Local Non-profits
June 27, 2016
Another 20 Missoula children will be paired with mentors. Dozens of additional students will have access to free after-school programs. And 115 more hungry schoolchildren will receive a supply of healthy food every weekend.
Those are the initiatives that will be supported by three $20,000 grants given by Missoula Federal Credit Union on Tuesday.
The grant recipients, selected by credit union members through online voting during the past month, are Big Brothers Big Sisters of Missoula, the Flagship Program and the Missoula Food Bank.
"Our members believe in a better Missoula," said Jack Lawson, chief executive of Missoula Federal Credit Union. "Their enthusiasm for this giving campaign is a testament to their dedication to our local community."
The campaign was launched May 10 to celebrate the credit union"s 60th anniversary as Missoula"s largest nonprofit financial institution. Seven area nonprofits made their cases for the grants via videos posted to the MFCU website. Each credit union member was allowed to vote once per day for his or her preferred nonprofit.
A total of 42,373 votes were cast by approximately 15,000 members during the course of the voting period.
Danette Rector, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Missoula, said the grant to her organization will have a powerful and immediate impact on at-risk youth in Missoula.
"Not only will this donation make a difference in the lives of the children and youth we serve, but also in the community in which we live," Rector said.
Aaron Brock, executive director of Missoula Food Bank, echoed Rector"s gratitude.
"It"s humbling to have been selected for this grant," Brock said.
Nick Roberts, director of the after-school Flagship Program, said that the giving campaign offered a new way to share the work of his organization �and, indeed, all of the organizations that participated.
"The project invited such a unique opportunity to celebrate local philanthropy while spotlighting the service impacts of our participant organizations," Roberts said. "The Flagship Program has been built on community engagement and creative partnerships, and this one was special among them."
MFCU"s Lawson thanked the participating nonprofits �which also included Court Appointed Special Advocates, Five Valleys Land Trust, Garden City Harvest and Zootown Arts Community Center �for their involvement in the campaign.
"Our aim was to put the spotlight on the many great organizations that are making Missoula a better place to live," Lawson said. "We really saw this as an opportunity to spread the word about their programs while giving our members a positive way to impact their work."