Checks totaling $35,000 were handed out to 17 area organizations Wednesday, Feb. 8, by the Rotary Club of Bettendorf at the Quad Cities Waterfront Convention Center in downtown Bettendorf.
The organization’s annual check presentation meeting celebrates the generosity of the community for helping support Wednesday’s event and also highlights the nonprofits receiving funds to help them further their missions.
Last year, the Bettendorf club donated nearly $40,000 in checks to further the missions of 21 area organizations.
This year, 56 grant requests totaling $136,670.96 were received by the club. The Charities Committee voted to fund 17 of the grant requests for a total of $35,000 – or just over quarter of the total amount requested.
The Charities Committee met in December to choose this year’s winners. Members of the committee were: Jeff Hassel, Ann Kappeler, Carol Foster, Joe Pacha and Greg Blaske. Bettendorf Rotary raises the money for the grants throughout the year at its fundraising events, including “Lobster Rock ‘n Roll.”
The 2023 grant recipients, their projects and the grant amounts awarded were:
- All Saints Lutheran Church Food Pantry: $2,500 for the pantry which is open to anyone from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. every Saturday. It serves more than 120 families each week.
- Big Brothers Big Sisters: $1,700 for Candid Conversations, a regular gathering session for parents/volunteers to support each other and gain tools to be more effective guides and advocates for young adults in our community.
- Café On Vine: $2,500 to buy supplies so it can continue to serve to-go meals for breakfast and “as needed” during lunch.
- Edwards Congregational United Church of Christ Tutoring: $2,500 for its tutoring ministry for 20 at-risk children and its “blessings in a backpack” programs that provide food for 40 students over the weekend.
- Empower House QCA: $2,000 to provide socialization activities and holiday gifts for brain injured adult club members.
- Fresh Films aka Dreaming Tree Foundation: $2,500 to provide an “I Am Able” documentary school screening and discussion series to spark conversations about empathy, inclusiveness and acceptance. The film highlights challenges and triumphs of children with special needs as they stage “Seussical”.
- Handicapped Development Center: $2,000 for an industrial wheelchair scale, which is a critical tool needed to monitor the health of individuals with disabilities who are unable to bear weight.
- Hope at the BRICK House: $1,900 to purchase a portable GaGa Ball pit for use by children and youth served by Hope at the BRICK House programs.
- Humble Dwellings: $2,500 for its A Good Night’s Rest program to buy new mattresses and bed frames to help promote health and success for those less fortunate.
- LivWell Cares (Compassionate Advocacy & Resources for Every Senior): $1,500 for free placement, information and referral services for QCA low-income seniors and those seeking long-term nursing care.
- Lutheran Social Services of Illinois: $1,000 to provide basic needs items to the foster children and families the agency serves through its Moline Children’s Services office.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center: $2,500 for the Metropolitan Youth Program (MYP) and Rock Island Boxing Club, volunteer-led programs that provide recreational, cultural and athletic opportunities for Quad Cities youth.
- Our Lady of the River Church: $2,500 for the Quad Cities Night to Shine Prom, an unforgettable prom night experience centered on God’s love, for people age 14 and older with special needs.
- One Eighty Hope Center: $2,500 to pay for equipment that offers life changing programming for at-risk children and families in west Davenport.
- Pregnancy Resources Bella’s Boutique: $2,500 to help parents and children thrive by providing quality parenting classes, infant material services, formula and diapers.
- St. Anthony Church: $2,500 for The St. Anthony Clothing Window which distributes clothing and toiletry basics to homeless and community members in need of support.
- YouthHope (formerly known as Christian Friendliness Association): $1,400 to give youth a safe place after-school at YouthHope’s Moline and Rock Island Youth Center Programs, which provide transportation, a hot meal and positive adult mentors.
The Bettendorf Rotary Club was chartered on May 22, 1957. With about 100 members, the club lives the Rotary motto – “Service Above Self” – by funding and participating in projects locally, nationally and internationally. To learn more, visit www.bettendorfrotary.com.
