Awards for this year totaled more than $130,000

NEWS RELEASE

This Fall, Blue Grass Community Foundation awarded $100,000 in grants to 16 charitable organizations for projects that will improve the quality of life for children and adults in Boyle County. Organizations serving Boyle County applied for funding through the Hudson-Ellis Competitive Grantmaking Program, which is made possible by the generosity of Lottie B. Ellis, whose bequest established endowments at Blue Grass Community Foundation.

Over the summer, the Hudson-Ellis Scholarship Fund awarded $36,000 in new and renewed college scholarships. Each year, renewable scholarships of up to $3,000 per year (a total of $12,000 over four years of undergraduate study) are awarded to high school seniors from Boyle County High School, Danville High School and Kentucky School for the Deaf.

The 2023 Hudson-Ellis Grant Recipients are:

• Allegro Dance Project received $1,500 to support an Inclusive Dance Outreach Program for youth in Boyle County.

• Art Center of the Bluegrass received $2,500 to support the Art and Wellness Program with the engagement of an Art Therapist and a Special Education Teacher.

• Boyle County Performing Arts Center received $1,000 to support the production of The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

• Boyle County Schools received $10,000 to provide scholarships for preschool students.

• Camp Horsin’ Around received $2,500 for general operating support.

• Centro Latino de Danville received $10,000 for general operating support.

• Danville/Boyle County Happy Feet Equals Learning Feet received $10,000 to purchase new shoes and socks for underprivileged children in Boyle County.

• Danville High School received $10,000 to support the cost of expanded dual credit offerings for juniors and seniors attending Danville High School.

• Family Services Association of Boyle County received $10,000 for emergency housing assistance for residents of Boyle County.

• The Gladys Project, Inc. received $3,927 to support Ready Set Go Preschool, a kindergarten readiness program for preschool age children living in and around low-income housing in Boyle County.

• International Book Project received $3,750 to support Pallets for Potential, which provides at-home libraries for economically disadvantaged K-5th graders attending Edna L. Toliver Intermediate School and Mary G. Hogsett Primary School.

• Kentucky School for the Deaf Charitable Foundation received $7,300 to support the expansion of the Kentucky School for the Deaf Library collection.

• New Hope Food Pantry received $10,000 to support the purchase of food that will benefit Boyle County residents in need.

• Pioneer Playhouse received $5,000 to support Youth Voices, a week-long workshop for at-risk youth that will use creativity and theater arts to promote communication skills, self-esteem, and resiliency of the human spirit.

• The Presbyterian Church of Danville received $10,000 to support the Soups on Us program that provides box lunches to Boyle County residents in need each week

• Special Persons Advocacy Network (SPAN) received $2,000 to support Camp Hope, which provides individuals with developmental disabilities with activities, field trips, and community involvement.

The 2023 Hudson-Ellis Scholarship Recipients are:

• Cailyn Godsey of Boyle County High School, attending Campbellsville University

• Tiffany Couch of Boyle County High School, attending Bellarmine University

• Tenghoit Kouch of Danville High School, attending Centre College

Lottie Ellis loved Boyle County, and although she passed away in 1999, her passion for her community lives on through the bequest she made to establish two permanent endowment funds at BGCF: the Hudson-Ellis Discretionary Fund and the Hudson-Ellis Scholarship Fund. To date, the Hudson-Ellis Discretionary Fund has made 259 grants, totaling more than $1.85 million, to local nonprofit organizations, and the Scholarship Fund has awarded $540,000 in scholarships to 78 students.