(Chelsea Update would like to thank Lauren Herrin for the information and photos in this story.)
The Chelsea Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, celebrated its 20-year anniversary Sunday, June 14 by doing what it does best – providing grants that enhance the quality of life in the Chelsea, Mich. community.
In a surprise announcement at its anniversary banquet held at St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea Hospital, the foundation surprised nine community organizations by awarding them a total of $40,000 in grants.
Seven grants of $5,000 each were awarded to:
Chelsea Area Historical Society: gathers and preserves Chelsea area history and recently secured the historic 1853 Boyd house at 128 Jackson Street for the organization’s permanent home.
Chelsea District Library: a respected, visionary, resourceful, and model public library—the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Best Small Library in America, 2008.
Chelsea School District: a school district of 2,435 K-12 students, which boasts a 95 percent graduation rate.
Chelsea Senior Citizens Center: a social club and community resource for senior citizens, retired persons and their adult children.
Faith in Action, Inc.: a community-funded, faith-based assistance and resource center for those who need a helping hand.
Purple Rose Theater Company: a professional theater company with roots in the Midwest that takes a handcrafted, artisanal approach to producing new and classic American plays.
St. Louis Center for Exceptional Children and Adults: a caring, residential, family living and learning environment for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
In addition, two grants of $2,500 were awarded:
Silver Maples of Chelsea: a locally owned, not-for-profit senior living community, jointly sponsored by the Chelsea Area Wellness Foundation and United Methodist Retirement Communities (UMRC)
UMRC Foundation: promotes the wellness, dignity, and independence of seniors by supporting the residents, staff, and communities UMRC serves, including the Chelsea Retirement Community and The Pines in Chelsea.
Chelsea Community Foundation Committee Chair Peter Feeney, said in a press release, “The best way to celebrate and thank the generous people who have built the Foundation over 20 years is to give back to the community that we love. The outstanding nonprofits receiving grants today play a tremendous role in the quality of life we enjoy here in Chelsea.”
The foundation is a permanent community endowment that has awarded more than $1.25 million through more than 100 grants to nonprofit organizations to support and improve the public well-being and quality life for Chelsea residents.
“The Chelsea Community Foundation is an example of what can happen when dedicated volunteers and donors have a vision and commitment. We congratulate the Chelsea Committee and all Chelsea Community Foundation supporters on this significant milestone,” said Mariam C. Noland, president of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan in a press release.
The Chelsea Community Foundation is a permanent charitable endowment fund that provides an ongoing source of revenue for qualified and needed programs and activities in the Chelsea community. Founded in December 1995, the Chelsea Community Foundation has a permanent charitable endowment of more than $2 million and has awarded more than $1.25 million in grants to organizations working to improve the quality of life in Chelsea and surrounding communities.
The Chelsea Community Foundation is an affiliate fund of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan.
