Since January 1st of this year, Beckley Area Foundation has granted $1.3 million to non-profit organizations, municipalities and educational institutions working tirelessly to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve.  BAF is able to meet our communities' charitable needs because of its donors.  By supporting and partnering with these organizations, BAF is building  stronger and healthier communities.   
Below is a listing of 114 organizations BAF has supported since the beginning of 2018: 
American Red Cross - Raleigh Co. office
Beaver Lions Club
Beckley Art Center
Beckley Babe Ruth League
Beckley Concert Association
Beckley Dream Center
Beckley Elementary
Beckley Health Right
Beckley Little League
Beckley Police Department
Beckley Presbyterian Church
Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center
Beckley-Raleigh Co. Health Department
Beckley-Stratton Middle School
Beckley Veterans Administration
Beyond Wishes Therapeutic Riding Program
Big Brother Big Sisters of South Central WV
Black Diamond Girl Scouts
Bluestone Baptist Church
Bradley-Prosperity Fire Department
Bread of Life Outreach Center
Brian's Safehouse
Buckskin Council Boy Scouts of America
The Carpenter's Corner
Catholic Charities of WV
Childhood Language Center
Children's Home Society of WV
City of Beckley/Beckley Events
City of Beckley/Parks and Recreation
City of Mullens 
Coda Mountain Music Academy
Cowen Public Library
Crime Stoppers of WV
Davis-Stuart
Family Crisis Center
Fayette Co. Public Library
First Baptist Church
First Christian Church
First Tee of West Virginia
First United Methodist Church
Fishes and Loaves Food Ministry
Fuller Center for Housing of Beckley
Grandview Christian Church Backpack Program
Greenbrier Valley Theatre
Hacker Valley Elementary School
Harmony's Breath
Helping Hands Resource Center
Hinton Area Foundation
Hospice of Southern WV
Humane Society of Raleigh County
Junior Achievement
Just For Kids Child Advocacy Center
Lillian James Learning Center
Mabscott Elementary School
Marsh Fork Alumni Association Roadside Park project
Mount Hope Heritage and Hope 
Mountain Heart Community Services
Mountain State Center for Independent Living
New River Gorge Regional Development Authority
New River Gorge Trail Alliance
New River Humane Society
Ohio-WV Youth Leadership Assoc. 
One Voice
Operation Underdog
Pine Haven Homeless Shelter
Piney Creek Watershed Association
Prince Railroad Station Authority
Princeton Public Library
Quota Club of Beckley - Empty Bowls 
Raleigh County Animal Rescue
Raleigh County Board of Education
Raleigh County Commission on Aging
Raleigh County Community Action
Raleigh County Historical Society
Raleigh County Public Library
Raleigh County Special Olympics
Ronald McDonald House Charities
Royal Family Kids' Camp
St. Francis deSales Catholic School
St. Matthews AME Church
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church Good Samaritan Fund 
St. Stephen's Episcopal Day School
Salvation Army
School of Harmony
Shady Spring Branch Library
Shady Spring High School
Shady Spring Middle School
Shepherd's Table
Sophia Public Library
Southern WV Fellowship Home
Southern WV Preparedness Partnership
Stepping Stones Academy 
Summers Co. 4-H Camp
Summers Co. Animal Control and Welfare Project
Tamarack Artisan Foundation
Temple Beth El
Theatre of West Virginia
Three Rivers Avian Center
Town of Sophia
Trap Hill Little League
Treehouse Arts Ensemble
United Methodist Temple F.O.L.K. (Feed Our Local Kids) Ministry
United Way of Southern West Virginia
Webster Co. Family Resource Network
Webster Co. High School
Webster Co. Memorial Hospital
WV Collective
West Virginia Dance Company
West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Woman's Club of Beckley
Women's Resource Center
Woodrow Wilson High School
YMCA of Southern WV
Youth Museum of So. WV
Additionally, BAF has provided numerous scholarships to 38 institutions of higher learning. 

​Through BAF, donors are endowing the future—helping people make an impact through lasting and meaningful contributions to meet the needs of our community today. Your gift does make a difference. 

​Wayne and Diana Bennett are retired educators from Raleigh County. Together they have spent over 70 years working with children and volunteering to support their community. Though they are retired, they have continued to give back to Raleigh County and now have established the Wayne and Diana Bennett Family Fund as an unrestricted endowment, utilizing BAF’s “Building over Time” option, to support the community grant program for Raleigh County.

To read the rest of the story click here!

BAF Susan Landis Youth Philanthropists (SLYP) presented grants to three local non-profit organizations.  Students presenting the grant awards were Ryan Vaught, David Maiolo, Dillon Ewing, and Amber Meadows.  On hand to accept the grant awards were Scott Hill from Theatre WV, Debby Berry from the Raleigh County Humane Society, and Susan Hambric from Beckley Art Center.

Students interested in joining the 2018-2019 SLYP board can get more detailed information at our SLYP page by clicking here. 
 

The Massey Foundation has provided $25,000 for a challenge grant that will match donations to existing or new unrestricted funds at the Beckley Area Foundation. This is the tenth year that BAF has received this meaningful gift that will leverage much needed discretionary funds. 

The Foundation receives multiple worthwhile grant applications each year in response to its annual Community Grant Program. The Massey gift offers donors an opportunity to help meet this need and double the impact of their donation. Building the pool of discretionary funds is important to our area non-profit charitable organizations. 

Unrestricted endowments generate income that can be used for widely diverse projects ranging from health and wellness programs and public recreation to education initiatives and support of the arts in our schools and communities. 

A new named unrestricted fund may be established with $5,000. Utilizing this matching opportunity, a donor could create a fund honoring their family or memorializing a loved one with a $2,500 donation that then would be matched.  Gifts of any amount to existing unrestricted funds will also be matched. 
​
The matching funds will be offered on a first come, first served basis. Contact Dena Cushman, Executive Director or Rebecca Williams, Chief Financial Officer at BAF to reserve your match.

Since April 1, 2018 over $43,000 has been distributed from Beckley Area Foundation's Donor Advised Funds.  By creating Donor Advised Funds, donors have the satisfaction of shaping well-considered philanthropic programs that reflect their special interests and concerns. 

Donor Advised Funds give donors an unparalleled opportunity to:

• Play an active, personal role in charitable giving;
• enhance their understanding of community agencies and needs;
• benefit from the BAF's extensive experience in fund and grant management; 
• obtain immediate tax benefits; and 
• build an enduring, permanent resource that will assure perpetuation of their charitable presence in the community. 

Distributions made since 4/1/18 have benefited:
American Red Cross of Raleigh County: $1,000
BAF Community Grant Program: $327
Beckley Concert Association: $1,344
Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Central WV: $914
Bread of Life Outreach Center: $1,000
Brian's Safehouse: $750
The Carpenter's Corner: $1,800
Concord University Foundation: $1,250
First Christian Church: $3,500
Fishes and Loaves: $1,000
Helping Hands Resource Center: $1,250
Hinton Area Foundation: $6,500
Hospice of Southern WV: $524
Humane Society of Raleigh County: $1,214.75
Just for Kids: $2,250
Mountain State Center for Independent Living: $250
One Voice: $500
Piney Creek Watershed Association: $250
Quota International of Beckley Empty Bowls: $250
Raleigh County Animal Rescue: $714.75
Raleigh County Board of Education: $800
Raleigh County Commission on Aging: $1,250
Raleigh County Historical Society: $1,000
Royal Family Kids Camp: $250
St. Stephen's Episcopal Day School: $2,000
South Asia Cultural Society: $2,500
Theatre of West Virginia: $2,000
Town of Sophia: $2,479.18
United Methodist Temple SAW Ministry: $500
Women's Resource Center: $1,000
YMCA of Southern WV: $2,884.50

Donor Advised grants were awarded from these endowments: 
​AEP Community Services Fund, Mr. and Mrs. L.D. Bembalkar Memorial Fund, Chase Community Service Fund, File Family Fund, Ford Family Fund, Mario C. Ramas Memorial Fund, Alex D. and Alice E. George Fund, Ralph H. Jackson Memorial Fund, Johnston-Frail Fund, Charles S. Lewis, Jr. Memorial Fund, Ben McGraw Memorial Fund, Albert King Minter, Jr. Fund, Robert and Margaret Sayre Fund, Smith Family Fund, C. Hampton Thomas, Sr. Memorial Fund, Woodcliff Garden Club Civic Beautification Fund, Woods Family Endowment, and the Word Family Fund. 

On June 21, 2018, the Beckley Area Foundation held its first ever GrantSeekers event at the Historic Black Knight Municipal Park. This was a new event designed to bring the Foundation's Donor Advised Fund representatives and local non-profit organizations together. ​

The Beckley Area Foundation is proud to support the YMCA of Southern West Virginia's capital campaign for construction of the new Cline Family YMCA. This donation was made possible thanks to the generosity of  our donors, both past and present. Your  gifts to our unrestricted endowments allow us to make lasting and meaningful contributions to meet the needs of our community today and in the future.

Read the full article from The Register-Herald by clicking here!

As part of our continuing efforts to support Raleigh County residents and organizations, the Board of Directors has approved our 2018 Gift to the Community. This will be an ongoing promotion throughout 2018. As new events are added, announcements will be made. 

CURRENT PROMOTIONS:
-FREE tickets to any Theatre West Virginia production if it is your FIRST time attending. This includes residents of Raleigh and surrounding counties. For tickets, contact Theatre West Virginia's box office 304-256-6800. Promotion ends August 4, 2018. Tickets are limited.  http://www.theatrewestvirginia.org/

-1/2 price season tickets for NEW members of the Beckley Concert Association. For tickets, call 304-253-3535. Promotion ends September 6, 2018. Tickets are limited. 

   Empty Bowls, a fundraiser for local food pantries hosted by Beckley Quota Club, is happening this Saturday.  BAF, a longtime supporter of this event and organization, provided them $3,734 to purchase pottery wheels, clay, and glazes that are used to make the bowls throughout the year at various locations around southern WV.

   Empty Bowls began in 1990 as an international project to fight hunger, personalized by artists, art students, community organizations and generally anyone who wants to get their hands in clay, to be a part of the solution in addressing hunger in their neighborhoods.
   Each community's events are self-developed and independent.  The "Empty Bowls" framework encourages and inspires participants of all ages to create and donate their piece of art to raise money towards food sustainability programs in the region.  The money is raised by having an event consisting of a simple meal of soup and bread, which is provided by generous restaurants and organizations in the area, with an empty bowl to be selected and taken home as a reminder of those who may not have enough to eat.  Tickets are pre-sold, while items for a silent auction and donations are secured for the event.  All of the money raised is awarded to local food banks and soup kitchens in the community.
   Quota Club of Beckley, in conjunction with the Youth Museum of Southern WV, began this initiative locally in 2013, with the first event being held in March 2014. They far exceeded projections creating over 700 bowls and raising $12,000, which earned international recognition as one of the five projects selected by Quota International for their Service Project of the Year Awards.
   The next year's event surpassed the previous with 1000 bowls being made and $15,000 being raised and distributed.  This earned the Quota Club of Beckley the international service award again that year, an honor they never expected 2 years in a row.
   2016 yet again surpassed the previous year, raising $17,500 that was distributed to 11 organizations throughout the region.  While 2017's event did not continue on this upward trend, it was still a wonderful success, raising $15,000, for a total of $59,500 being raised since its inception.  
   We hope you will come out and support this awesome event and make 2018 the best year yet!