Non-Profit

By: Kallie Sulanke— Local teachers will receive $5,371 in Robert P. Bell Education Grants from The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc. More than 1,000 students will benefit in this second grant cycle of the academic year. Awards of up to $450 are available through the Bell Grants program. Funded projects are creative or innovative ideas or programs designed to stimulate learning in students. Delaware County teachers may apply throughout the year during the four grant cycles. This summer, The Community Foundation established the Robert P. Bell Teacher Grants Fund to permanently endow the program to ensure that teachers have…

By: Mark Kreps— The  East 16th St. Church of God Community Garden, located at 2605 E. 16th St. in Muncie, IN  recently received a $500 Community Grant from the Walmart Community Grants Team in Muncie in support of their wellness initiatives for feeding those in need  throughout  Delaware County and the surrounding community. Hunger and families going without nutritious food is on the rise worldwide, and is a serious problem in the United States and a growing epidemic in Delaware County.  Community gardening is combating the problem. The  growing problem in hunger  is why  the East 16th St. Church of…

By: Lois Altman— On Christmas morning there will be a Christmas Breakfast at the Harvest Soup Kitchen that is open to all.   We have many volunteers ready to help prepare and serve the meal and many generous people who have donated food for the breakfast. The menu will be:   Egg Bake, Ham, Fried Potatoes, Fresh Fruit, Holiday Breads and plenty of Hot Coffee and Homemade Cocoa. All are welcome to dine between 9:30 and 11:00AM. The Harvest Soup Kitchen is located at 920 East Charles St.  Its mission is “to serve the hungry without regard to race, gender or color”. …

By: Jud Fisher— MUNCIE, In—Over twenty local organizations have benefitted from Ball Brothers Foundation Rapid Grants during the second half of the year. A number of these Rapid Grants have been specifically designated to support visioning, marketing, and branding efforts that will help nonprofits plan for the future and better tell their stories of impact in the community. “The importance of strategic planning cannot be overstated,” stated BBF’s President and COO Jud Fisher upon reflecting on the recent grants. “Organizations that aspire to greatness will not get there without having a solid, actionable plan in place. BBF recognizes the importance…

By: We’re Trying Collective— From Friday through Sunday, December 16-18,  We’re Trying Collective will host a pop-up shop featuring a curated collection of handmade artwork and home goods. We’re Trying, a group of Muncie-based artists whose mission is to collaboratively build community through creative expression, have set up a temporary shop in the Rose Court Building located at 125 E. Charles Street in downtown Muncie to feature one-of-a-kind gifts from local artists and makers. All sales will be cash or check only. Community members are invited to drop in for a quick shopping trip or stick around for a number…

By: Lieutenant Jonathan Taube — MUNCIE, IN  – Last year, an anonymous donor offered up a $5,000 matching gift to benefit The Salvation Army and spur their neighbors on in giving generously during the Christmas season. The inaugural Muncie Match was an overwhelming success with more than 100 individual donors giving over $10,000 during the match week. The Salvation Army is pleased to announce that last year’s donor has once again come forward, along with the support of others in the Muncie community, to pledge another $5,000 matching gift for 2016. This year’s Muncie Match will trek place Monday, December 12 through…

By: Michelle Kinsey— MUNCIE – Indiana Public Radio will present the classic holiday tale, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” as an authentic live radio drama on Friday, Dec. 16, at Sursa Performance Hall. “It’s a Wonderful Life” tells the story of George Bailey, a man who has given up his dreams in order to help others, and whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence. Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and how different life in his community of Bedford Falls would be had he never been born. The Radio Drama is directed by…

By: Chris Flook— In the year 2000, the You and Year 2000 committee buried two time capsules along the newly founded Cardinal Greenway. The first time capsule was to be opened on Indiana Day, December 11, 2016 and the second is to be opened on January 1, 2100. On Sunday, December 11, 2016 at 2:00pm at Minnetrista, retired Muncie architect and You and Year 2000 committee member Jim Gooden and Karen Vincent, director of collections at Ball State University, opened the time capsule in front of about a dozen local community members. Four individuals or community organizations placed contents in…

Muncie, IN—With the help of a generous grant from the George and Frances Ball Foundation, Whitely Community Council has announced that they are accepting applications for an Executive Director, to start in the new year. The Whitely Community Council is a neighborhood association representing the Whitely Community located on the east side of Muncie. It values shared information and opportunities to improve lives.  Their goal is to build an integrated education cycle for all ages that aligns schools, home, and the community, as well as to promote neighborhood pride, employment opportunities, business growth, and neighborhood beautification. In 2016 alone they…