Community Reinvestment Fund

Firing up the Funding Furnace

The Willy Street Co-op Board of Directors is pleased to announce the new season of funding through the Community Reinvestment Fund (CRF). The Community Reinvestment Fund distributes unclaimed or abandoned membership money, or equity, that has accumulated over past years. The WSGC bylaws specify that “the Co-op shall dedicate any funds (equity) remaining unclaimed to educational and charitable purposes.” Each year, a mailing is sent to the last known address of the members who still have equity in WSGC, but have remained inactive for over a year. Those individuals have the option to renew their membership (by making an equity payment toward their full fair share), to withdraw the equity (cancel the membership), or donate it to the Community Reinvestment Fund. The WSGC Board then determines how much of the donated or unclaimed money will supply the Community Reinvestment Fund and for the past several years they have allocated a total of $7,000.00 annually.

The focus of this fund is on providing grants to local, non-profit groups with limited access to funding. Those applying to the Community Reinvestment Fund should benefit the community through the human services of charity or education. In 2004, the committee received eleven applications and awarded 7 grants.

Priority will be given to developmental projects, educational projects, and events that are consistent with WSGC’s goals. This includes, but is not limited to, a focus on:

Food
Nutrition
Health/Well Being
Sustainable Agriculture
Cooperative Education
Social Change.

Priority will also be given to organizations working in the near-east side community of Madison.
Women, people of color, and members of other protected groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

The following is a listing of last year’s awards and their organization’s focus.

Common Wealth Development, Inc. $500.00
To purchase healthy after school snacks or light meals for ‘at-risk’ students from East and La Follette High Schools while they are receiving pre-employment skills training and job placement assistance in the Youth-Business Mentoring Program. Additional monies from this grant also assist in funding field trips centered on food-related careers for the program’s participants.

Community Action Coalition $1,000.00
This near-eastside organization provides physically accessible gardening opportunities for our community’s disabled residents. This ongoing project, in cooperation with several state and local agencies serves to desegregate people with disabilities while providing a sustainable benefit to them by building wheel-chair accessible raised-beds and planting supplies, outreach materials, signage, printing and mailings.

Friends of Troy Gardens $2,500.00
Along with commitments from other area benefactors, FTG will purchase a tractor, plow, disc, and mower in order for their community project to become self-sufficient and sustainable. The tractor and tools will be used primarily for tillage on the 5-acre farm and 5-acre community gardens that feed hundred’s of mixed-income Madison residents. Both the farm and the gardens are committed to serving low-income area residents by keeping their produce prices affordable.
Additionally, the mower will be used to maintain the newly seeded, 5-acre prairie and lawns. Other programs benefited by the tractor and implements are the K-8 Children’s Garden and a high school student training program.

Malcolm Shabazz City High School $800.00
Students and school organizers have developed a program called “Alternative Lunch-time Activities”. Funding will be used primarily to purchase healthy lunchtime snacks for three different groups during their lunchtime meetings; The Student Advisory Group, open to all students interested in discussing issues that affect the entire school, the AODA Support Group, open to all students interested in quitting or cutting down on drug/alcohol use, and lastly, the Lunch Improvement Group, which includes students and parents interested in improving the food options at the school through their involvement with the Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch program and Troy Gardens.

Red Caboose Day Care Center $1,000.00
Continuing the initiative started last year with Garden to Be Community Farm, this grant renews the center’s CSA membership, enabling students to enjoy fresh vegetables weekly throughout the growing season. Additionally, this funding enables youth in this near-eastside program to make bus trips to GTB in Mt. Horeb, WI in order to provide exposure to the work and experience of farming. Finally, part of this funding is allocated assist the center in purchasing additional cooking equipment needed for the students to prepare the vegetables they’ve received from their CSA delivery.

R.E.A.P. Food Group $500.00
To support planning and implementation of the sixth annual Food For Thought Festival on Sept. 18th, 2004. This nationally recognized festival attracts over 6,000 visitors, food connoisseurs and activists interested in opportunities to learn more about where their food comes from, how their food buying choices can affect their personal health and well-being, the environment, local economy and our community at large.

Sustain Dane $700.00
In cooperation with Madison Environment Group, Inc, SD will build on the successful EnAct (Environmental Action Teams) program by adding a chapter to the EnAct Participant Guide, which focuses on sustainable food choices. EnAct, a neighborhood-based, action-oriented program, which encourages sustainable living and building stronger communities, will utilize this new chapter in their publication to provide more and updated connections to existing local resources.

The deadline for the year’s application is Monday, February 28th at 9:00pm. Awards will be announced Tuesday, April 5th, 2004. For more information about the Fund or to receive a grant application, you can download an application from on our website at: www.willystreet.coop or call Lynn Olson, Member Services Manager at (608) 251-0884 or email at l.olson@...