The Board of Directors of the Rauch Family Foundation I has awarded a total of $68,095 to 57 nonprofit organizations that serve Rock Island residents.
In all the Rauch Family Foundation I has made grants totaling more than $1.25 million to more than 100 nonprofit organizations that serve the citizens of Rock Island.
It was founded in 1987 from bequests from the estates of Albert and Lester Rauch. The brothers were long-time Rock Island residents who each left more than $1 million to establish two separate foundations.
Rauch Family Foundation I is designed for “The enhancement of the lives of the citizens of Rock Island.” Rauch Family Foundation II was created for “The enhancement and understanding of Judaism, its people and traditions.”
Members of the Rauch I Board of Directors are Damon Colvin, Dayl Empen, De’Andre Robinson, Kelly Thompson, and Dr. LaShante Williams.
Grant recipients are:
- Augustana College – $1,000. Speech, language, and hearing fee reduction.
- Ballet Quad Cities – $1,000. Academic, social, and arts enrichment for Rock Island students.
- Bethany for Children & Families – $2,000. Prevention/Education services for Rock Island students.
- Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the Mississippi Valley – $1,000. One-to-one youth mentoring.
- Children’s Therapy Center of the Quad Cities – $1,000. Assistance with fees for Rock Island families.
- Christian Care – $1,000. Parish Nurse Program.
- Christian Friendliness – $1,000. Summer camp for Rock Island youth.
- Church of Peace – $1,000. Food pantry for Rock Island residents.
- Clock, Inc. – $1,300. New computer.
- Common Chord – $1,000. Youth instruments and music education.
- Community Caring Conference – $1,000. Community outreach.
- Family Resources, Inc. – $1,000. Increasing access to services for victims of violent crimes.
- Figge Art Museum – $1,000. Big Picture outreach in Rock Island.
- Fresh Films – $1,000. Job training for Rock Island youths and young adults.
- Friends of Hauberg Civic Center – $500. Plant and art-based educational programming.
- Friendship Manor – $1,000. Charitable care needs for Rock Island seniors.
- Genesius Theatre Foundation – $500. Costuming for the 2026 season.
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa & Western Illinois – $1,250. Financial support for Girl Scouts programs in Rock Island.
- Heart of Hope Ministries – $2,000, Food & essential supplies for Rock Island residents.
- Humble Dwellings – $1,000, New bed for Rock Island students in need.
- Humility Homes & Services – $1,000. Outreach for Rock Island unhoused persons.
- Immanuel’s Grace Ministries – $1,000, IGO Bus Project
- Lutheran Social Services of Illinois – $1,000. Services for children in Rock Isand.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Services – $1,000. Memorial service and awards
- Multigenerational Speaker Series – $1,000. Presentation on Black Civil War regiment based in Rock Island.
- Nahant Marsh Education Center – $1,000. Nature-based training opportunities for Rock Island youth.
- NAMI – $1,495. “My Ascension” suicide prevention programming in Rock Island.
- Narratives – $1,250. Launching a new narrative with Rock Island students.
- NEST Café – $1,500. “Nourishing the QC”.
- Planting Books –Seeds 4 a Better Future – $1,000. Rock Island Kids Read.
- Prairie State Legal Services – $3,000, Legal services for low-income Rock Island students.
- Project NOW, Inc. CAA – $1,000. Technology upgrades for the Rock Island Senior Center.
- Putnam Museum – $1,000. Putnam Community Access Fund.
- QC AIR – $1,000. Improving living conditions for immigrants and refugees.
- QC Community Broadcasting Group – $1,000. Connecting people, resources, and opportunities.
- Quad Cities Open Network – $2,000. Supplemental Emergency Assistance Program.
- Quad City Arts – $1,000. 2025-2026 Visiting Artists Series.
- Quad City Botanical Center – $1,000. Plant Discovery Bus scholarship
- Quad City Symphony Orchestra Association – $1,000. Music engagement for Rock Island students.
- River Bend Food Bank – $3,000. Rock Island schools pantry purchase program.
- Sacred Heart Catholic Church – $1,000. Food pantry for Rock Island residents.
- SBC Music Academy – $1,500. Learning through music and art.
- School Health Link – $1,500. Equipment purchases for Rock Island High School Clinic.
- Snaith Family ASD Sensory Program – $700. Ensuring EMS can serve ASD patients.
- Soles for Children – $1,000. Coats & shoes for children in Rock Island.
- Spring Forward Learning Center – $1,250. Sustained after-school support for Rock Island students.
- STEAM on Wheels – $1,000. “Riding together for a brighter future.”
- Tapestry Farms – $1,000. Healthy, culturally appropriate food for immigrant families.
- Testimonies of Hope – Argrow’s House – $1,000. Services for domestic violence survivors.
- The Third Place QC – $2,350. Laundry access for Rock Island neighbors.
- Trinity College of Nursing & Health Services – $2,000. Scholarships for Rock Island students.
- Viral for Your Survival – $500, Health care access through connections.
- World Relief – $1,000. Food Pantry expansion.
- WQPT First Book Club – $500, First Book Club in Rock Island.
- WVIK, Quad Cities NPR – $1,000. Augustana Public Radio Information Services (APRIS).
- Youth Service Bureau of Rock Island County – $2,000, Counseling for low-income children and families.
- YWCA of the Quad Cities – $1,000. QC Empowerment Center – Diapers and feminine hygiene supplies.
