The Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) is pleased to announce the recipients of Community Grants for the 2019 - 2020 program cycle. In total CFNIL committed over $1.4 million for 74 projects, programs, and events operated by nonprofit organizations in Boone, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties.

In this year’s In Youth We Trust grant cycle, Lucia Horton was awarded a grant to bring her plans for a “Picnic with a Purpose” to life. Lucia is pictured above with Taryn Marko, the Executive Director of Winnebago County CASA, the agency whose clients and volunteers will receive the benefit of Lucia’s plans. We decided that the best way to tell you about this project is simply to post Lucia’s comments that she shared at the grant award reception and which are printed in full below.

In 2016, Byron Bank donated an undeveloped plot of land located in the middle of a neighborhood in Belvidere to the City of Belvidere. At first, the City simply cleared the lot of brush and debris, leaving a large empty grass space. Then, the City began some efforts to use the space to engage people living in the neighborhood: the fire department would bring a truck and spray kids on hot afternoons, the police department would hand out ice cream bars donated by Deans Foods.

Up, up and away! The Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office is proud to announce it has received a $9,619 grant to purchase two (2) UAV’S (drones). The grant was awarded by the Dr. Louis & Violet Rubin Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois Community Grants Program.

One hundred years ago today, the Congress of the United States of America passed the bill authorizing the 19th amendment to the Constitution, which states: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Over the next year work continued to ensure its passage in the States, with ratification occurring August 18, 1920. Pictured above at left: Alice Paul sews a star onto the NWP Ratification Flag, representing another state’s ratification of the 19th Amendment.

The Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) and NW HomeStart are proud to announce the recipients of the 2019 Neighborhood Grants Program. The grants will be awarded to 13 groups and organizations (listed below) working to improve the quality of life in their communities at the neighborhood level. The grants are worth $24,998.69. CFNIL and HomeStart will host a reception for recipients Wednesday, May 22nd at HomeStart’s Rockford office (803 N. Church Street) from 4 to 5 p.m.

On Wednesday evening, May 15, the Club Blue 2019 Committee hosted a check presentation and reception on the grounds of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois. The Committee, along with presenting sponsor Illinois Bank & Trust, presented checks totaling $190,000 to representatives from Children’s Home & Aid and MERIT, the Medical Evaluation Response Initiative Team.

The 2019 Community Foundation of Northern Illinois Scholarship cycle was one for the record books! Nearly one hundred community volunteers read and reviewed 1,127 applications from 399 students. Thanks to their hard work, the generosity of donors, and the exceptional efforts of the students of our region, CFNIL is pleased to announce the awards made in this 2018-2019 scholarship cycle. The full list of recipients is posted online:https://www.cfnil.org/2019-scholarship-recipients/

April 22, 2019 In Youth We Trust Council is made up of high-school-aged youth from across Northern Illinois. The program engages young people in community service and philanthropy. IYWT gives the council members resources and opportunities to help solve problems affecting their peers and their quality of life. The IYWT Grant Program distributes up to $25,000 a year to youth-led projects in the region. IYWT Council Members set grant policy, review youth-inspired service project proposals, and recommend proposals for funding to CFNIL’s Board of Directors.

"Often, for our individuals with severe developmental disabilities, accomplishing daily tasks such as communicating with others or participating in daily living activities can be a challenge…new computer equipment and assistive technology [can] improve the effectiveness and impact in preparing and conducting training for both participants and staff.”

April 8, 2019 “Hour of Code” is a national initiative which has the goal to get 10 million students to try computer science for one hour, and to demystify computer science and coding. Rock Valley College’s Computer and Information Sciences (CIS) department offered their first “Hour of Code” event on December 12th, 2015. The event brought 126 people from the Rockford Region to learn more about Computer Science fundamentals and coding.

Milestone, Inc. was founded in 1971 by a group of concerned parents of adult children with developmental disabilities who were frustrated by the lack of living centers available for their children. Since that time, it has grown to become Winnebago and Boone Counties’ largest provider of residential, developmental, vocational, and social support services for adults and children with mental retardation, autism, epilepsy, and cerebral palsy.

On International Women’s Day, as the accomplishments and advancement of women around the world are celebrated, we’d like to share the story of a woman who lived a very normal life in Rockford; a woman whose posthumous generosity saved an event that will inspire academic excellence and bring once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for local students — forever!

The National Center for Rural Health Professions (NCRHP), housed at the UIC Health Sciences Campus in Rockford, strives to meet the health care needs of rural residents and their communities across throughout Illinois — and beyond! In 1993 the RMED (Rural Medical Education Program) was established at UIC.

Today Women of Today’s Manufacturing (WOTM) announced the establishment of a new scholarship with the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois, with the purpose of supporting women pursuing a degree in engineering. The WOTM Ruthann Gaston Women in Engineering Scholarship fund will award scholarships to female students enrolled in the NIU Engineering at RVC program.

This President’s Day, February 17, 2019, Midway Village Museum welcomed visitors for a special event, Presidents and Patriots. This unique event featured reenactors portraying President Abraham Lincoln and first lady Mary Todd Lincoln, and these special guests gave a little extra pomp to an already exciting announcement. Today, Midway Village announced the finale of a successful fundraising campaign to complete the Carroll Starr Endowment Challenge.

NW HomeStart and the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) are accepting applications for the Neighborhood Grants Program until 5 p.m. on Monday, April 1. This program is available to neighborhood-based groups and nonprofit organizations operating in Boone, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties.

UPDATE: As of 6:30 a.m. Thursday morning January 31, phones and servers are back online. Scholarship applicants who worked on their applications last night or early this morning should double check to ensure everything saved properly and contact CFNIL staff with any issues: cstahly@cfnil.org. Thank you for your patience!

Due to extreme weather conditions, CFNIL will be closed Thursday, January 31. Staff may be reached by email between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.: For scholarship application questions: cstahly@cfnil.org Other inquiries jsmith@cfnil.org Staff will also monitor CFNIL’s Twitter and Facebook pages for scholarship application questions.

Today the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) is pleased to announce the results of the 2018 – 2019 Community Grants Program cycle. The Community Grants Program is CFNIL’s largest grantmaking program. Grants are awarded to support charitable projects, programs, and events operated by nonprofit organizations in Boone, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties. Community Grants are made in six focus areas: Arts & Humanities, Education, Health, Human Services, Sustainable Communities, and Youth & Families.

Students from Central Elementary School in Rochelle are proving that no matter your age, you can make a difference in your community! Faced with the challenge of not having a way to store fresh food for meals at their afterschool program, these enterprising young people researched possible solutions and decided to write grant proposals to the Rochelle Area Community Foundation as well as CFNIL’s In Youth We Trust grant program.