FY 2024 Grants Total $408,100 to Nine Deserving Central Texas Nonprofits
AUSTIN, TEXAS – June 11, 2024 – The 326 women of Impact Austin along with the 59 members of Girls Giving Grants (g3) are awarding five new grants totaling $249,700. These funds will benefit Central Texas nonprofits working to make a difference in the lives of girls, youth in general, and families. Last night at the Impact Austin Annual Meeting, members voted on specific allocations for Community Grants and Education Grants arising from 72 applications.
Spring 2024 Community Partners awarded the grants include AGE of Central Texas, GirlForward, Lirios Pediatrics, and Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center. The g3 award goes to Foster Angels of Central Texas. Impact Austin announced four grants in the Equity and Health & Well-Being focus areas earlier in the fiscal year. Those Community Partners include CASA of Travis County, Friends of the Children Austin, Keep Austin Fed, and Latinitas.
Impact Austin Board President Deanna DeHaven remarked that Impact Austin members have experienced joy in their philanthropy since their first grant to LifeWorks in 2004. At the same time, they learned about and supported a wide range of community nonprofit organizations.
“Amid 126 grants to 98 Central Texas nonprofits, each has special outcomes. Our grants have launched and expanded projects, invested in nonprofit infrastructure and operations, and provided unrestricted funding. Every year, our members evaluate and adjust procedures to make the grant process more trust-based and equitable. We’re a learning organization, and we’re applying that learning to our grantmaking.”
Impact Austin is embarking on a new strategic plan and will use the remainder of 2024 to refine its grantmaking program, which will re-launch in 2025.
“We believe our nonprofit colleagues will be pleased with Impact Austin’s continued evolution in funding procedures,” added DeHaven.
Impact Austin is one of 4,000 collective giving groups in the U.S. and its members are among the 370,000 Americans engaged through giving circles. From 2017-2023, $3.1 billion was given by collective giving groups like Impact Austin. These statistics are among the key findings in a national research report from the Dorothy A. Johnson Center, Colmena-Consulting, and Philanthropy Together. In Abundance: An Analysis of the Thriving Landscape of Collective Giving in the U.S. notes that collective giving democratizes and diversifies philanthropy, expands what gets funded, pushes the bounds of traditional philanthropy, impacts the members of giving circles, and is a catalyst for social change.
Impact Austin welcomes new members year-round; identifying as a woman is the only requirement. Each member contributes $1,250 through an annual payment, monthly payments, or a scholarship to fund the organization's grants and operations. Impact Austin Community Partners are also invited to join at no cost. Members can get involved by voting on grants, joining a committee, participating in the review process, attending social events, learning philanthropy education and more. For more information, visit https://www.impactaustin.org/membership
About Impact Austin’s and g3’s 2024 grant recipients:
AGE of Central Texas: HELPing South Austin
$24,100 Community Grant
AGE of Central Texas helps older adults and their caregivers to thrive as they navigate the realities and opportunities of aging and caregiving. The Health Equipment Lending Program (H.E.L.P.) is among their wide array of programs. Impact Austin’s 2010 Health & Well-Bring Grant funded an early expansion of H.E.L.P. by increasing awareness, improving equipment storage and distribution, and optimizing volunteer activity.
Impact Austin’s 2024 grant is unrestricted and awarded in support of the mission and programs of AGE of Central Texas.
Lirios Pediatrics: Expanding Care for Kids
$96,500 Community Grant
Lirios Pediatrics is a nonprofit medical provider offering free preventative well-child exams, acute and chronic care, school vaccinations, prescription medication, and mental health counseling to uninsured children in Central Texas. Lirios is currently the only free clinic in Texas that provides care exclusively for uninsured children. Through partnerships and in-kind donations, Lirios can provide all patients with radiology, laboratory services, bus passes, food, clothing, medications, or gift cards for prescriptions.
With the Impact Austin grant, Lirios will expand services by hiring extra staff and boosting available appointments by 50%. Lirios Pediatrics proposes that their additional capacity will reduce strain on local hospitals and emergency rooms, while also enhancing school attendance rates through timely child vaccinations.
GirlForward: Growing GirlForward’s Impact in Austin
$96,500 Education Grant
GirlForward is a community of support dedicated to creating and enhancing opportunities for girls who have been displaced globally by conflict and persecution from more than 17 home countries. The organization was founded in Chicago, IL, in 2011 and began providing services in Austin in 2016. GirlForward Austin provides year-round support to refugee girls through Camp GirlForward (summer camp), a school-centered 1:1 mentoring program, and virtual tutoring. In 2023-2024, GirlForward served 31 girls at McCallum H.S. in Austin ISD with plans for expansion in 2024-2025.
With the Impact Austin grant, GirlForward Austin will continue and expand its programs to include another school and up to 100 girls by 2025-2026. Grant funds will enhance volunteer screening and training; expand staff; and invest in technology and evaluation programs.
Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center: Girls+Outside
$24,100 Education Grant
Founded in 1976 as Westcave Preserve, the mission of Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center is to inspire people to develop a lifelong practice of enjoying and protecting nature. They accomplish this through educational programs, collaborative alliances, and conservation of their 76-acre preserve. Girls+ Outside (G+O) is an initiative of Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center connecting 400 K-12th grade girls and gender-expansive students in 10 Austin ISD schools to nature through mentoring partnerships, field trips, and unique experiences that positively influence their health and well-being. 77 percent of participants are from economically disadvantaged communities and 91 percent are students of color.
Impact Austin’s 2024 grant is unrestricted and offered in support of the mission and programs of Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center.
Foster Angels of Central Texas: Clothing Support for Children and Youth Experiencing Foster Care in Central Texas
$8,500 Girls Giving Grants Award
Foster Angels of Central Texas (FACT) aims to improve the lives of children in foster care, ensuring each child has their basic needs met and providing life-enhancing, life-enriching opportunities whenever possible. At the heart of Foster Angels' endeavors lies a profound dedication to addressing the diverse needs of children in foster care. Their comprehensive approach encompasses three primary focus areas: meeting basic needs; facilitating engaging activities and camps; and providing crucial support for aging-out foster youth. Last year, FACT supported 3,774 children and youth in their 30-county service area.
The Girls Giving Grants award will purchase gift cards for clothing for children in foster care. CPS caseworkers, CASA advocates, or other community partners send requests for clothing to Foster Angels.
About Impact Austin
Founded in 2003, Impact Austin is a women’s collective giving organization funding nonprofits in Central Texas that provide services in Bastrop, Hays, Travis and Williamson counties. Impact Austin’s mission is to cultivate women’s collective wisdom and strength to transform themselves and their communities through philanthropy. Girls Giving Grants (g3), Impact Austin’s youth initiative, creates learning and leadership opportunities for girls in grades 8-12. Over the past 21 years, 3,040 local women philanthropists from Impact Austin and g3 have given $8.84 million to nonprofit organizations and collaboratives in Central Texas, including 126 grants serving 98 organizations. For more information, visit www.impactaustin.org.
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Media Contact:
Judi McCarthy
Impact Austin Marketing Committee
661.303.8408
