A nonprofit, after-school program's new gymnasium is less than a month from completion and got a last-minute boost with an additional $20,000 in funding from a Medford foundation.
Kids Unlimited topped the list of December grant recipients from the Gordon Elwood Foundation. The award caps off $1.3 million in funds collected over the past year for the agency's "Raise the Roof campaign." Construction, which started in June, added a 15,000-square-foot gym, kitchen and dining room behind Kids Unlimited's building on Medford's North Riverside Avenue.
Builders are sanding the gym's floors and finishing drywall, said Executive Director Tom Cole. The gym and social services center for homeless and runaway youths is planned to open in mid-January, Cole said.
Kids Unlimited serves more than 1,000 low-income and at-risk children throughout Jackson County. That number stands to double as a result of the renovated facility, Cole said.
Other grant recipients from the Elwood Foundation are:
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Central Point Parks & Recreation Foundation — $10,000 to develop scholarship support for after-school and enrichment programs for Central Point District youth.
Mediation Works — $10,000 to support the implementation of the "Talk It Out" conflict-resolution program at Roosevelt Elementary School in Medford, which includes 390 students and 21 licensed school staff.
Southern Oregon Educational Service District — $ 10,000 for "Project Listo," which promotes literacy for high-need, Spanish-speaking families by providing child care and support in preschool, elementary and middle school education; and assisting parents in accessing community services.
Southern Oregon Goodwill Industries — $10,000 for its "Steps to Success" program, which combines intensive case management, family mentoring, referrals to affordable mental health, drug and alcohol treatment programs, on-site parenting and financial education classes with focused career development plans for adults attempting to develop family stability and financial self-sufficiency.
Oregon Building Congress — $ 7,000 to engage six Southern Oregon high-school students chosen for the Southern Oregon Construction Academy in construction-related activities that demonstrate relevancy of math and science, teach students about the variety of post-secondary training options and introduce students to local employment opportunities.
Academia Latina, Southern Oregon University — $5,000 to support tuition for 10 outstanding Hispanic high-school students to attend a weeklong residential program designed to inspire the learning and career opportunities that a university education affords.
Project Dove — $5,000 to support intervention for elementary, middle school and high school students in the Medford School District from homes with domestic violence.
Rogue Valley Children's Discovery Museum — $5,000 to provide scholarship funds toward admission and memberships for low-income children and families from Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Curry counties.
Sams Valley Parent/Teacher Association — $2,500 to purchase construction materials to complete a community picnic pavilion project, improving the elementary school's field and facilities available to the community.
Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail slemon@mailtribune.com.
