New London & Spicer, MN – The New London-Spicer Area Fund (NLSAF) has announced the opening of their annual grant round. The NLSAF seeks to fund programs that fit within the categories of arts, healthy communities and lifestyles, environment and large-scale and sustainable initiatives. Eligible organizations must be a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, school or government entity who serves the 12 northern townships of Kandiyohi County. The deadline for grant applications is October 31st at midnight. For more information about the grant round and to apply, visit www.communitygiving.org/grants and select “WACF – New London-Spicer Area Fund Grant”.
Sara Carlson, Executive Director of the Willmar Area Community Foundation stated, “The New London-Spicer Area Fund committee is excited to reconvene and continue our work in fostering connections and strengthening the community in Northern Kandiyohi County. Our goal is to support programs that highlight innovation, empowerment, and resilience, reflecting our deep commitment to the New London-Spicer area.”
$17,000 was awarded during the 2023 NLSAF annual grant round. Last year’s grant recipients included $3,400 to Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota to sustain the growth of the senior, shut-in and local child care center meal programming in the New London-Spicer area and $1,000 to support a social and educational event for families of persons in a deaf or hard of hearing community in the Willmar Lakes Area; $3,000 to Bethesda at North Point for for Parkinson’s Disease programming; $2,500 to the Prairie Woods Environmental Learning Center to build a gazebo on site to enhance current programming and gathering opportunities; $2,500 to New London Arts & Culture Alliance to support the Artist in Residency program that creates new approaches for how the community engages with each other through shared spaces; $2,000 to support Pre-K and elementary students in the New London-Spicer area with Art, Wellness and Environmental Education field trips to the Village Children’s Museum; $1,000 for a matching gift for local land purchase on a new build project through Habitat for Humanity; $1,000 to Spicer Beautification Committee for the Hwy 23 Mural project to paint a large scale fish mural and bring community members together; $300 to the New London and Spicer Fire Departments to support a co-hosted community event in the summer of 2022; $300 to the Sunburg Fire Department to support a community event.
The New London-Spicer Area Fund is a citizen-driven and professionally managed ongoing resource that enables individuals to support advancements in the community and serves the 12 northern townships of Kandiyohi County: Arctander, Burbank, Colfax, Dovre, Green Lake, Harrison, Irving, Lake Andrew, Mamre, New London, Norway Lake and Roseville.
The New London-Spicer Area Fund is a fund of the Willmar Area Community Foundation (WACF) and powered by CommunityGiving, which is a collaboration of community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors. The NLSAF has awarded over $165,000 in grants to the community. Collectively, CommunityGiving administers over 1,200 funds totaling nearly $240 million in assets. Learn more at CommunityGiving.org/NLSAF.