St. Cloud, Minn. – The Bernick Family Foundation in partnership with the Central Minnesota Community Foundation is granting $200,000 to 12 organizations. All grants go toward supporting youth, education, fitness and well-being programs primarily in greater Minnesota. Eligible organizations were required to be a 501(c)3 organization, school or governmental entity and serve one of the seven regions that Bernick’s services.
Melissa McDonnell, Bernick’s HR Program Manager stated, “We are honored to be a part of helping make these programs and projects possible. At Bernick’s we believe giving back to the community makes us all stronger together and are proud of our legacy of serving the community since 1916.”
The latest round of grants supported the following community projects:
- $10,000 was awarded to the Bemidji First Lego League for its robotics program.
- $15,000 was awarded to the Central Minnesota Council, Boy Scouts of America to expand its Youth Career Exploring Program.
- $25,000 was awarded to Community Action Duluth for its Farmers Markets program.
- $10,000 was awarded to Deep Portage Learning Center for new canoes and a storage shed.
- $15,000 was awarded to the Duluth Children’s Museum for its Mobile Museum.
- $5,000 was awarded to the Holdingford FFA Alumni for its greenhouse expansion project at Holdingford High School.
- $20,000 was awarded to the City of Longville for playground accessibility enhancements.
- $17,000 was awarded to Prairie Woods Environmental Learning Center for its Outdoor Playscape.
- $25,000 was awarded to Superior Soccer Association, Inc. for its KickSafe Project.
- $30,000 was awarded to the Turtle Lake School District for its track revitalization project.
- $8,000 was awarded to the United Way of West Central Minnesota for the Village Children’s Museum “Bodies in Motion” exhibit.
- $20,000 was awarded to The Yes Network for its Ready 2 Play program.
Tailor Doeden, Director of Community Engagement for the Central Minnesota Community Foundation says, “Each grant recipient is doing incredible work to strengthen their communities. At CMCF, we are grateful to partner with Bernick Family Foundation as they empower us to engage people, connect resources and build communities.”
The Bernick Family Foundation established their first fund with the Central Minnesota Community Foundation in 1989. The Bernick’s company and the Bernick family uses their funds to support organizations that reflect the family’s core values, while providing leadership in responding to emerging community needs.
Founded in 1916, Bernick’s is a fourth-generation family-owned business, providing beverage, vending and food service solutions. The Waite Park-based company has a long tradition of investing in its local communities to improve quality of life. In addition to their support through the Foundation, Bernick’s continues as a longtime philanthropic leader through direct financial and in-kind donations to over 100 causes each year.
The Central Minnesota Community Foundation (CMCF) attracts and administers charitable funds for the benefit of the local community. Since 1985, CMCF has grown to $160.7 million in assets and awarded $166.7 million in grants to non-profits. The CMCF is governed by a local board of directors and is a partner of CommunityGiving, which is a network of community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors. Collectively, CommunityGiving administers over 1,200 funds totaling nearly $240 million in assets. Learn more at communitygiving.org/cmcf