By Blair Drake, MOAA Contributing Editor
MOAA chapters across the U.S. are giving back to the military community through programs that provide needed outreach, services, and recognition to servicemembers, veterans, and military families.
To help fund and acknowledge these high-impact, local community programs, the MOAA Foundation is awarding $79,400 in grants to 22 MOAA chapters through its Community Outreach Grant program. This is the foundation’s third grant cycle. To date, it has awarded 47 grants totaling more than $175,000.
This year’s grant recipients are:
- Charlotte-Metrolina (N.C.) Chapter
- Fort Campbell (Tenn.) Chapter
- Grand Strand (S.C.) Chapter
- Greater Dallas Chapter
- Historic Mayport (Fla.) Chapter
- Indian River (Fla.) Chapter
- Keowee (S.C.) Chapter
- Keystone Capital (Pa.) Chapter
- Kings Bay (Ga.) Chapter
- Luke (Ariz.) Chapter
- North DFW (Texas) Chapter
- North Texas Chapter
- Northwest Florida Chapter
- Sarasota (Fla.) Chapter
- South Alabama Chapter
- South Central Florida Chapter
- Southeast Idaho Chapter
- Southeastern Wisconsin Chapter
- Southeastern North Carolina Chapter
- Southwest Oklahoma Chapter
- Tampa (Fla.) Chapter
- Treasure Coast (Fla.) Chapter
To be eligible to receive a grant, councils or chapters must meet basic administration requirements and be actively involved in the delivery of community services in one of nine areas of critical family need: housing, food assistance, employment, health (including behavioral health), family support, community reintegration, financial assistance, legal assistance, and transportation.
“We saw a significant uptick in participation and in the quality and diversity of the MOAA council and chapter grant applications this cycle,” says Col. Mike Turner, USAF (Ret), MOAA vice president of development. “We scored 43 applications compared to 29 last cycle, and the average application score by our independent judges was also significantly higher.”
The long-term sustainability of the Community Outreach Grant program is largely dependent upon individual MOAA member donations to the MOAA Foundation. Corporate and external foundation funding may provide additional funds to the grant pool. To make a donation and to learn more about the program and the MOAA Foundation, visit www.moaa.org/foundation.
