Grants Awarded
Over The Years
2024 - 2025 Small Grants
Habitat for Humanity - $2.5K Support the Critical Home Repairs program to help low-income homeowners remain safely in their homes. All too often low-income homeowners – especially the elderly and disabled people - do not have financial or physical ability to make needed repairs to their homes. The program emphasizes the needs of older homeowners – improving mobility and accessibility to prevent life-threatening falls. Repairs include construction of accessibility ramps, installing grab bars in bathrooms, repairing flooring, installing interior ramps, siding repair/replacement, painting, window replacement, weatherization, plumbing and electrical work.
Sleep in Heavenly Peace - $2.5K Support building and delivering beds to bedless children in the Boise area. Sleep in Heavenly Peace has a simple yet powerful goal: to ensure that no kid in our community has to sleep on the floor. We understand that for children, having a comfortable and safe place to sleep is essential for their well-being, but unfortunately, many families experiencing poverty or other crises cannot provide this necessity. Our team of dedicated volunteers works tirelessly to build and deliver fully furnished twin-size beds to families in need. By providing a bed to a child who would otherwise be sleeping on the floor, we don't just give them a place to sleep, but also a sense of security, comfort, and dignity. We believe that every child deserves a good night's sleep and a chance to succeed, and
we are committed to making that a reality for as many children as
possible.
JEM FRIENDS - $2.5K The JEM friends Independent Living Program is a comprehensive program providing stepping stones for at-risk youth overcoming the odds to be independent and resilient adults. The program is structured in four phases: basic life skills, job training, financial stability, and housing readiness, each phase with its own set of objectives and milestones. Throughout the program, the youth work towards navigating/utilizing healthcare and having a personal mentor, graduating high school or obtaining a GED, maintaining employment for 6+ months, being on a lease or agreement, and having a driver’s license and vehicle.
Ride for Joy - $2.5K Support a program that serves youth in foster care living in Ada County. In Idaho, there is a great need for programs that support children in foster care, and Ride for Joy is developing an equine-assisted services program to help meet this need. Youth in foster care are a vulnerable population and have typically experienced high levels of trauma and instability in their lives, which puts them at higher risk for mental health and behavioral challenges. This impacts their relationships, success in school and work, and increases the likelihood of engaging in risky behaviors and self-harm.
2022-2023 Small Grants
Baby Steps - Sudden Infant Death San Safe Sleep Program with Pack N Plays for each participant
Boise Vertical Farms, Inc - Replace Damaged screen doors in one of the greenhouses
Boys and Girls Clubs of Ada County - Provide a Common Core aligned curriculum to 1st - 12th graders at all summer locations
Children's Home Society of Idaho - Music therapy programs "Music at the Farm" and Music Meet Up"
Idaho Law Foundation, Inc - Supplies for lawyers community legal
clinics
Idaho Veterans Chamber of Commerce - Supplies for West Ada Center for Technical Education to begin building tiny homes
Lifelong Education & Aging Resource Network, Inc - Support for the continued expansion of Senior Planet Technology Education for older adults
Meridian Library District Foundation, Inc - Repairs and supplies for Meridian Library District's Bookmobile
Y Stem and Chess Inc - Expand a STEM afterschool program at Title 1 schools in Boise.
2021-2022 Small Grants
Genesis - Free Dental care
Girls on the Run – Confidence programs for Girls
Nations United – Removing barriers for refugees through Soccer
Boise Philharmonic – Sonic Boom summer project for kids
LEARN – Chrome books and training for seniors
Life’s Kitchen – Upgrades for new dining room
Mayfly project – Equipment and supplies for fishing outings for Foster kids
Sleep in Heavenly Peace – In home beds and bedding for children without beds
2020-2021 Small Grants
Boys and Girls Club of Ada County - $3,000 Program to counteract the effects of Summer Learning Loss and Covid 19
Learning Lab - $2,000 Computer Replacement
Meridian Library - $3,000 Special Needs Children's Book Collection
Salvation Army - $2,000 Backpacks for kids
Idaho Diaper Bank - $3,000 Diapers and Pull-ups
Learning Lab is doing terrific work with the support of GBRF
What would your life be like if you could not read this post, not read a book, or not even read a street sign? This status of functional illiteracy would make your life frustrating and severely limited.
Olga is a refugee from Congo and came to the US in 2012. She knew learning English was imperative and attended Learning Lab’s outreach class at Davis Park Apartments. She continued with the classes a well as completing a refugee childcare business development program. She then opened a daycare and now manages a prosperous farm through Global Gardens.
Learning Lab, in Garden City, helps educate adults and families to make their lives better. Their mission is to transform the lives of adults and families through personalized education – and that is what they do every day. Their goal is to help people improve their literacy skills so that they can further their education, get a job, help their family, and fully engage in the community.
Prior to COVID, all of their classes were in person. Students would come
to class and work with tutors on lessons created just for them. Though students came from diverse places and backgrounds and had varying levels of literacy skills, they came together as a community in the classroom and collaboratively worked to improve their lives.
Then came COVID, and things had to change. Safely meeting the needs
of their students and retaining that sense of community was of primary importance. By using Zoom, Facebook, phone calls, texts, and emails, classes were able to continue. The Learning Lab early childhood team delivered literacy kits to families. In the end, they did whatever was
needed to do to keep their students learning.
After being homeless and struggling with addiction, Kathleen turned her life around, sought treatment, and started therapy. She became such a valuable coach and role model in her treatment program that she was asked to mentor others. Her goal was to become a Peer Support Specialist – but first she needed to earn her GED.
This is where learning Lab came in. Kathleen had been home-schooled by her mother until about 8th grade and had never attended a regular school. Lila, at Learning Lab, eased her concerns and assured her that, with hard work, she could achieve her goal. Working 1:1 with her tutors, she earned her GED and is now a Certified Peer Support Specialist.
Learning Lab has been in the Boise community, for almost 30 years, adapting their classes to meet the need of their students. Their website can be found at www.learninglabinc.org
GBRF applauds Learning Lab for engaging the refugee community and providing opportunities for all to become productive and contributing members of the Treasure Valley Community.
GBRF supports Life’s Kitchen
The Greater Boise Rotary Foundation awarded a grant of $22,000 to Life’s Kitchen in 2018 and a grant of $7,500 in 2019. The funds were used for equipment for food preparations.
While presenting the $22,000 check, GBRF Board of Directors were invited to a Board Meeting of Life's Kitchen. Their guest speaker was a young woman, in the program. Before she was introduced, attendees got a little background on the student and learned that before entering the program, her self- esteem was so low that she found it difficult to talk to anyone in the program.
She entered the boardroom with a purpose and an air of someone who wanted to tell us her story. From the first sentence of her presentation to the end, we were riveted. She told us of her life before Life’s Kitchen. She had dropped out of school, just hanging around with her friends all day, with no goals for her life. She was getting into trouble and had dealings with the police and headed down a path toward incarceration. Now, after being in the program, she is headed toward a career in food service. She is now a mentor to new students.
Life’s Kitchen works with 16-20 year old Opportunity Youth. adults are described as disconnected and are neither working nor in school and have a high risk of being incarcerated, becoming homeless, or worse. In Boise today, there are over 11,000 young adults that fit into this
description. LK provides a 16-week workforce development, food service, life skills, and GED training program that provides them with on-the-job training for the food service industry.
Life skills training includes balancing a checkbook, applying for a loan, finding an apartment, peer counseling, health relationship mentoring, changing the oil in their car, hygiene,, and so much more. Life’s Kitchen supports those students who have nowhere to turn. They teach the students how to work, how to overcome barriers, and how to succeed in life.
Life’s Kitchen operates a Café, makes and delivers meals, and caters for companies and special events. The proceeds from all these activities support their ongoing programs. That was the plan before COVID 19. When COVID hit, they had to shut down all of the businesses so students were not receiving as much on-the-job training and money was not coming in from the different enterprises.
The good news is that the students continue to receive excellent instruction from the exceptional instructors at Live's Kitchen and are participating in more practical culinary training when our community bounces back from COVID, the graduates will be ready and able and trained to go to work.
Funding for the STEM Resource Center
The STEM and Multipurpose Resource Center, at the Girl Scouts, Silver Sage Council, will provide a permanent educational space where K-12 girls will engage in fun, hands-on,extracurricular STEM learning that will increase STEM interest and knowledge. Funding will equip, furnish, and modify 1,000 square feet to create a first-rate STEM resource center. Once completed, the center will provide an easily accessible, permanent, safe space where girls will have the opportunities to participate in hands-on activities such as coding and programming, construction design and model building, creative
and discovery-based pursuits, financial literacy and leadership skill building.
Bells For Books Bus gets new paint and wrap
GBRF granted the Garden City Library Foundation $15,000 for new wrap and paint for the Bus. This bus travels to area of the City where children and parents are not able to go to the Library in garden City. The children loves the books and look forward to to bus every day that is it scheduled to be in their neighborhoods.
Life's Kitchen gets a new cooker and warming oven
From one gigantic cooker to two. Greater Boise Rotary Foundation approved a grant to Life's Kitchen to purchase a new cooker and warming oven. $16,600 . They wasted no time ordering the cooker and getting it hooked up and in use. They can now double the amount being cooked at one time. This, in turn, makes it possible for Life's Kitchen to offer more meals to customers, schedule more catering jobs, and most of all, educate students and prepare them for the world.
Boise Watershed Exhibit
The River Campus presents an exhilarating new dimension to water education with exterior exhibits that show the big picture of our valley’s water resources. Designed by public artists, engineers and educators, the River Campus is a destination site!
GBRF is proud to have supported Boise Watershed with $17,000 toward their Exhibit.
Old Grants
Large Grants 2018-2019
Girl Scouts (STEM Room and equipment) $15,000
GC Library Foundation (Repairs to Bus) $6,500
December 2019
Giraffe laugh was granted $20,000 for their new Preschool site at the Boys and Girls Club in Garden City.
Life's Kitchen was granted $7,500 for a new oven. Both Organization help students prosper in our community.
Grants Funded in 2018/19
Boise Philharmonic 2,000
Girls on the Run 1,100
Idaho Botanical Garden 1,025
Idaho diaper Bank 1,000
Idaho Watercolor 2,500
Land Trust 1,998
Learning Lab 2,500
Meridian Food Bank 1,800
Salvation Army 1,000
Sleep IHP 2,000
Young Writers 3,000
BSU Scholarship 3,000
$22,923
To see a list of grant recipients since 2011, click below :