WINCHESTER, INDIANA – On Thursday, November 13th, the Community Foundation of Randolph County hosted its Thanks4Giving Annual Dinner at Willow’s Edge Event Center. The evening included a social hour, dinner catered by Romer’s Catering, and a program.
Attendees heard from Pam Frazier and Charlene (Kehoe) Wilson, the executive directors of the Art Association of Randolph County and Start with Art Ltd respectively, about the impact of their participation in the Jumpstart program from Bonterra. Both individuals reflected on the importance of such capacity-building efforts for the sustainability of nonprofit organizations in smaller communities.
As a Regional Arts Partner for the Indiana Arts Commission (IAC), the Community Foundation of Randolph County had the privilege of welcoming and honoring arts organizations from across the eleven counties in Region 5. Braydee Euliss, the Regional Arts Partner Coordinator, shared updates on changes to the IAC’s programming while also recognizing the grant recipients in attendance.
While IAC grant recipients had already received their funds, the Community Foundation presented checks totaling $91,750 to twenty-one (21) non-profit organizations serving the residents of Randolph County. The Foundation stewards its unrestricted dollars to assist nonprofit organizations through competitive grant cycles each spring and fall.
“We are proud to be the stewards of community resources that can continue to make Randolph County a better place to live, work and play,” Executive Director Lisa Jennings said. “We are lucky to have so many donors committed to this place we all love. As we acknowledged through our theme for this year’s annual dinner, the generosity of our community is our greatest treasure.”
The Foundation’s Board of Directors approved the recommendations made by the Foundation’s Grants Committee, having reviewed applications based on established criteria and scoring. The following organizations received support from the Fall 2025 Grant Cycle:
- Cardinal Greenway, $8,000
- For a trail repair project
- Chasing Sunsets, $4,975
- For expanding mental health awareness, Teen Mental Health Mondays, and grief support
- Community Christmas Corporation, $8,000
- For a lease-to-own Christmas Light Show
- Countryside Christian Church, $5,000
- For Sweet Dreams for Randolph County Kids
- Dylan Williams Forever An All Star Foundation, $4,350
- For concession drainage and renovation at Dylan Williams Memorial Park
- Farmland Friends Food Pantry, $5,000
- For the Healthy Proteins program
- Good Samaritan Foundation, $1,000
- For support of the CareFlight Helicopter Replacement
- Healthy Communities of Henry County, $5,000
- For the Wilbur Wright Trail-Vision Trail Connector in Randolph County
- Huntsville Community Center, $3,600
- For drainage projects at the Center
- Indiana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, $3,500
- For the Reach Out and Read program
- Jay-Randolph Developmental Services, $1,000
- For Creative Connections Outdoor Equipment
- Town of Modoc, $4,000
- For baseball diamond lighting upgrade and community festivals
- Phi Delta Kappa Foundation, $2,500
- For Coats for Kids program
- Preservation Society of Union City, IN-OH, $7,000
- For the Union City Railroad Heritage Mural
- Randolph County Area Community Theatre, $7,000
- For acquiring a musical production license
- Randolph County United, $2,200
- For Yodel (online community calendar)
- Union City Education Foundation, $4,000
- For the implementation of an advanced guidance counseling system
- Vision Corner, $3,000
- For a laser projector for Community Christmas entrance and other community activities
- Winchester Alumni Association Scholarship Endowment Fund, $3,125
- For Golden Graduate book presentation to WCHS National Honor Society
- Winchester/Randolph County Animal Shelter, $6,000
- For animal shelter expansion heating and fans
- Youth Service Bureau of Jay County, $3,500
- For supplies used in the BASE program
Grants were made possible from the generous support of the Foundation’s Community Enrichment Fund; the Riverstart Union Township Endowment Fund; the Union City Community Fund; the Chris & Doreen Culy Family Charitable Fund; the EDP Renewables Charitable Fund; the Rural Randolph Cares Agricultural Endowment Fund; the James & Linda Noffsinger Fund; the Chip & Ruth Loney Fund; the Joel & Jane Flesher Family Endowment Fund; the Whitacre Family Charitable Fund; the Wick’s Employees Giving Fund; and the City of Winchester Welcoming Indiana’s Next Generation (WINGS) Fund.
The final portion of the program was all about GIFTs. Grant Cox, Scholarships & Community Development Officer, shared that the Community Foundation had reached its goal of $375,000 in gifts to unrestricted funds to release the full $750,000 available through Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT) VIII matching grant opportunity, and then he announced that another $750,000 matching grant opportunity from Lilly Endowment Inc. was available through GIFT IX. While GIFT IX will run through June 30, 2028, the Community Foundation has started accepting donations to unrestricted funds to ensure that Randolph County receives the $750,000 to strengthen quality of life for the residents of Randolph County.
“With our achievement of our fundraising goal in GIFT VIII and the opening of the GIFT IX opportunity, we love the opportunity to share how donations to unrestricted funds, which funded most of tonight’s grant awards, help us to strengthen the quality of life in Randolph County,” stated Ashley Stephen, Community Grants & Operations Manager. “Our next regular grant cycle will be our Spring 2026 cycle, which we expect will open around mid-February and will close near the end of March.”
Community Foundation of Randolph County partners with donors to leverage their philanthropy in ways that transform lives. Since 1993, the Community Foundation has helped generous donors to meet community needs, provide scholarship opportunities to local students, and made grants to nonprofit organizations working to improve Randolph County. The Community Foundation strives to be a local entity known for inspiring good and impacting success by bringing people and resources together. To learn more, go to www.randolphcountyfoundation.org or call 765-584-9077.