Nonprofits, especially those financially impacted, encouraged to apply for one of these grants

Morgan Hill Life file photo
An inflatable “Herbie” greets visitors during a previous Garlic Festival.

By Robert Airoldi

Robert Airoldi

In staying true to the mission statement of the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association, the board of directors are proud to give funds to the local non-profits that have helped with the success of the festival for the past 40-plus years. The GGFA has given millions of dollars during the past decades and this year they will be donating $40,000 through grants and volunteer organization payouts.

Previously, volunteers of local nonprofits have worked before, during, and after the festival and “paid” based on the amount of their hours worked.

With the inability to host large event in 2022, the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association has pivoted to donating funds through a grant process in addition to the volunteer work payouts.

Gilroy Garlic Festival President Jeff Speno encourage nonprofits, especially those financially impacted, to apply for one of these grants.

Each nonprofit organization will sign a contract guaranteeing completion of requirements (Terms of Grant); and then must complete and show proof for a list of marketing tasks targeting each organization’s constituency of supporters.

These would consist of:

  • Prominent presence of the GGFA on the organization’s website as a sponsor
  • Minimum social media posts of at least once every eight weeks over a specified period of time
  • Minimum number of dedicated e-blasts to the organization’s database

Grants will be from $500 to $5,000 per application per year.

Applications must be emailed to the GGFA by 9 p.m. Sept. 30 to [email protected].

The Morgan Hill Library is starting up a no-cost Early Learning Program at our local library in partnership with the YMCA. The program provides caregivers and children (age 0-5) with experiences and knowledge necessary to ensure children arrive at the steps of kindergarten ready to learn. The program will run every 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. every Tuesday and Thursday. Registration is required and space is limited to 20 families. There will be an English/Spanish bilingual teacher. Details: (408) 779-3196, [email protected].

We got word from organizers that this year’s Find Waldo event was a huge success and a good time was had by all. Throughout July, Waldo searchers visited 22 local businesses trying to find a hidden Waldo cardboard figure  (the storybook character) in each store.

More than 100 children, along with their parents, turned in completed passports. Prize winners were selected at random at a “wrap party” Aug. 1 at BookSmart. Each merchant donated a prize along with the Chauffeur Champion prize: $100 gift cert to Craft Roots and $100 gift cert to Kelly Brewing Co. BookSmart Community Advantage will donate a book to First5 Community Solutions for each passport turned in. That’s 109 new books donated to this very worthy cause!

Applications are now open for Community Action Grants for 2022-2023 funded by the Morgan Hill branch of the American Association of University Women. Grants of up to $1,000 are awarded to local nonprofit organizations for specific programming consistent with AAUW’s mission and are funded through AAUW-MH’s Wildflower Fund.

Application forms, including criteria, are available at www.aauwmh.org/grants/. Deadline is Nov. 1, with recipients to be notified Nov. 29.

Ten grants totaling $7,000 were awarded in 2022, to  BookSmart Community Advantage for Diverse Books for Our Community and Gift of Reading Morgan Hill; Britton Middle School and Home Club for a coding program for sixth graders; San Martin Gwinn K-8 Home and School Club for components of the Reading Revolution; PA Walsh school for Mini Mermaids; Paradise Valley Engineering Academy for a classroom library refresh for first grade; Boys & Girls Clubs of Silicon Valley for TechBridge Girls; One Step Closer Therapeutic Riding for an equine assisted learning program for women; Literary Legacies for mentor support; and Discovery Counseling Center for Bold Quest and Bold Journey.