Bunnelle, Waccamaw foundations award grants to area nonprofits

Two area foundations, Frances P. Bunnelle of Pawleys Island and Waccamaw Community of Murrells Inlet, have awarded more than half a million dollars to 34 nonprofits in Georgetown and Horry counties.

Bunnelle and Waccamaw are affiliates of Coastal Community Foundation, headquartered in Charleston. The Bunnelle awards to a total of 22 nonprofits are Bunnelle’s “Grants for the Common Good” competitive grant cycle completed in April, Geales Sands, executive director, said in an announcement.

The grants were in two areas of Bunnelle’s mission: “Addressing the Root Causes of Poverty” – four nonprofits received such grants – and “Encouraging Positive Youth Development,” which had 18 recipients.

In the first area, $20,000 grants were awarded to Miss Ruby’s Kids, The Salvation Army of Georgetown and Williamsburg counties, the Center for Heirs Property Preservation and $6,000 to the Nurse-Family Partnership of the Pee Dee Region of the S.C. Department of Health & Environmental Control.

For youth development programs, the following nonprofits received $20,000 grants: Bible Way Community Learning Center (summer camp); Black River United Way (3rd grade reading); Friends of Coastal South Carolina (natural learning); Grand Strand Tech Council (after school); Georgetown Presbyterian Church Hispanic Outreach; Pawleys Island Child Care Center; Pawleys Island Presbyterian Church (summer program); Teach My People (summer program); The Village Group (Plantersville Summer Academy).

Also in the youth development area, the Georgetown County Family YMCA received $18,209; Cultural Council of Georgetown County and St. Christopher’s Children both $15,000, as well as the following: Georgetown County Boys Mentor Group ($6,000); Grand Strand Miracle League, Inc. ($5,000); Institute for Child Success ($14,000); S.O.S. Health Care, Inc. ($9,600); Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics ($4,500) and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service ($11,691 for community outreach and youth programs).

Waccamaw Community Foundation’s second quarter competitive grants also included several summer programs, Edie Blakeslee, regional vice president at Coastal Community, noted. Blakeslee works with Shawna Mosley-Foster and board member Muriel O’Tuel of WCF.

In the first quarter, grants across all WCF funds surpassed $186,000.

Camp Smiles received $7,500 for its summer camp for children with cerebral palsy and Down syndrome; Pee Dee Community Project, $5,500 for a 10-month math tutoring initiative; and Teach My People, $5,000 for a summer program. Bridgewater Academy Public Charter School, Toomey’s Kids, Inc., and Waccamaw American Leadership Forum were awarded $2,500 grants.

Carolina Human Reinvestment of Georgetown County, Each 1 Teach 1 (at-risk Horry County students), Friends of Coastal South Carolina, Lowcountry Food Bank all received $2,000 grants from WCF.

Additional awards went to Ex-Cel Enchanted Learning ($1,500); Family Justice Center of Georgetown ($1,000); Girl Scouts of Eastern South Carolina ($1,000); SOS Health Care, Inc. ($1,000); and Teen Angels at North Myrtle Beach High School ($500).

This story was originally published June 7, 2016 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Bunnelle, Waccamaw foundations award grants to area nonprofits."