Thank you: local helpers during coronavirus

Rotary donates N-95masks toWest Bloomfield schools

Rotary International District 6380, donated 160 N -95 masks to theWest Bloomfield School District.

“The Rotary Club of West Bloom field along with most of the 53 Rotary clubs in District 6380 have contributed funds toward this worthy project, “Gerald Hill, WBSD superintendent and previous president of the West Bloomfield Rotary Club, said in a press release.

Rotary District 6380 has a project goal to donate 100,000masks to frontline workers.

Through its 100KMask Challenge, the Rotary district has purchased and donated almost 60,000 N-95 masks. To raise additional funds, it is selling customized non-medical grade masks through a partnership with GLOW, a women’s empowerment organization.

For more information, visit www.rotary100k.org.

2 businesses donate PPE to Waterford School District

Dental and medical supplier KaVo Kerr donated six shipping pallets of approximately 2,160 canisters of disinfecting wipes. The donation was initiated by a district family.

PTI Engineered Plastics of Macomb Township donated 1,610 face shields to be used by staff members when managing close contact with students, and when cleaning buildings and buses.

For more information, visit wsdmi.org.

Credit union receives Community Spark Award

MSU Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU) received the 2020 Community Spark Award that recognizes banks and credit unions for supporting small businesses, according to a press release.

MSUFCU launched a program to support local restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were invited to submit photos of meals fromtheir favorite local restaurants on the credit union’s Facebook or Twitter pages with the hashtag #MSUFCUEatsLocal. Daily winners, April 22-May 13, were awarded two $25 gift cards to local restaurants, one for themselves and one to pay forward.

Asecond roundof the giveaway took place with a focus onBlack- andLGBTQIA+-ownedandoperated restaurants, with daily winners, July 10-July 31. MSUFCU purchased a total of $4,200 in gift cards to local restaurants for the giveaways.

As part of the Community Spark Award, the credit union was awarded$250 to donate to an organization. It chose Weekend Survival Kits, which distributes donated items and pack kits, providing food on the weekends for children in the Greater Lansing area schools.

Based in Lansing, the credit union has several locations in Oakland County.

For more information, visit msufcu.org.

EvolveK12 nonprofit provides remote learning grants

EvolveK12, a nonprofit coalition which provides financial assistance toK-12 schools, is offering thousands of dollars in remote learning grants for teachers and students in need, according to a press release.

Maria Kopicki, a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker Weir Manuel in Birmingham, is president/CEO/founder of EvolveK12. Kopicki and Coldwell Banker Real Estate CEO John North from the North Woodward Family Foundation have donated funds to EvolveK12, to help make to grants possible.

For more information about the education grants, visit evolveK12.org or email evolvek12funding@gmail. com.

Oakland County offers grant program for cultural institutions

Oakland County is offering a new grant opportunity for cultural institutions. The Oakland Together Cultural Institution COVID-19 Support grant program allows Oakland County to award grants of up to $50,000 to arts, cultural stewardship organizations, according to a press release. Grant applications will open Oct. 5 and close at 5 p.m. Oct. 14. Visit www.oakgov.com/covid/grants/Pages/cultural-institution-support.

Mahindra donates $75,000 in urban agriculture grants

Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA) donated $75,000 in urban agriculture grants this year, helping 4,800 households access nutritious food in the area.

The manufacturer established MAN A’ s Urban Agriculture Grant Program in 2015, to focus on non-profit urban agriculture groups in Detroit, Flint and Pontiac. As the company observes its founding in 1945, it celebrates the harvests by community members as a result of MANA’s grants, according to a press release.

Micah6 of Pontiac, As bury Community Development Corporation of Flint, and Edible Flint shared $20,000 of the 2020 grant funding. Detroit grants totaling $55,000 were distributed among Burnside Farm, Charles Drew Transition Center Horticulture Program, D-Town Farm, Greening of Detroit, Keep Growing Detroit, Mt. Olivet Neighborhood Watch, North end Community Development Corporation, Yorkshire Woods Community Organization.

“Covid-19 has hit disproportionately many communities including those we fund in Detroit, Pontiac and Flint,” Rick Haas, Mahindra AutomotiveN orth America’s President and CEO, said in the press release.

“Earlier this year, after we pivoted to making PPE and feeding first responders, we changed the focus of our Urban Agriculture Grant Programto help those in our community that are struggling more than ever to put healthy food on their tables. Ensuring the availability of healthy food can enhance one’s health and act as an additional defense in a pandemic. Growing one’s own food helps stretch a household budget, especially during an economic downturn.”

Some of the funds were used to prepare and distribute 2,300 kits with seedlings to home and community gardeners in Detroit and Flint. Other recipients used the funds for emergency food distribution.