December Grants Support NTHS, Book Program, Holiday Assistance

(DEC 2021) The Allegany County Area Foundation recently made grants to support a variety of local activities.

ACAF awarded $600 to the National Technical Honor Society (NTHS) Belmont Chapter (BOCES). The chapter’s usual fundraising efforts have been sidelined by COVID restrictions resulting in a budgetary shortfall. This grant allows for seventeen students to be inducted into NTHS and helps with the cost of the induction ceremony.

ACAF provided $1000 to the Belfast Public Library in support of its Book Box program. Library staff created the Book Box in May, responding to local needs and noting the popularity of subscription type programs. Each month, recipients pick up a box with 3-5 books, snack, and age-appropriate swap. When that box is returned, they receive the next edition. Feedback from recipients helps to enhance the contents of future boxes.

The library has seen new patrons and a thirty five percent increase in circulation since the program started, with eighty percent of participants under the age of eighteen, including excellent pre-school age participation.

The Allegany County Shop with a Cop Fund awarded $260 grants to Wellspring Ministries and ACCORD Corporation. Both have well-established programs to provide gifts to kids throughout the county during the holiday season, and these grants supported those efforts.