The month of May may be behind us, but at Kern Community Foundation we never stop talking about our biggest celebration of philanthropy, Give Big Kern, which this year took place on May 1 and turned out to be Kern’s BIGGEST Giving Day yet.
Please use this link to access our Give Big Kern 2018 Report to the Community, which is hot off the presses and contains a narrative of highlights from this year’s event, lots of useful data, photos, donor remarks, testimonials from nonprofit participants, an acknowledgment of our many wonderful sponsors, and some “looking forward” comments. A number of our participants will find themselves mentioned in this report, and we thank everyone who contributed to it and our Giving Day.
Note: Kern Community Foundation’s preparations for Give Big Kern 2019 officially begin in less than two weeks, when we will participate in a two-day Giving Day Leaders Forum hosted by technology partner GiveGab. We will be learning together with more than two dozen other Giving Day leaders from across the nation in the hope of making Give Big Kern 2019–on Kern Community Foundation’s 20th Anniversary Year–an even more fun and engaging experience for donors and participating nonprofits.
As you enjoy reading about this year’s Give Big Kern, be sure to also mark your calendars:
May 7, 2019, is our next “One day to celebrate the giving spirit of Kern County!”
Kern Community Foundation is helping The Wonderful Company get the word out about an opportunity for Kern County nonprofits to apply for grants between $5,000 and $50,000 to serve the communities of Wasco, Delano and McFarland during 2019, primarily in the areas of:
Health & Wellness
Community Beautification
Supporting families
However, Wonderful Community Grants will support “game-changing work across all program areas.”
Successful applications will demonstrate community need, and yield tangible and visible results. Funds are available for program development/expansion, innovation, technology and equipment. Full details may be found here.
The application period opens August 1, and the following information sessions in Kern will be offered as follows to help applicants prepare:
Delano/McFarland Information Session July 11, 12:30-1:30 pm
Delano Regional Medical Center
The Scarlet Oak Conference Room
1401 Garces Hwy.
Delano, CA 93215
Wasco Information Session August 1, 7:00-9:00 am
The Old Courthouse
810 8th St.
Wasco, CA 93280
Application season is open now through July 31, 2018, for The Peter Anthony Catholic Education Scholarship at Kern Community Foundation.
This Scholarship was established in 2017 to provide tuition assistance for a Catholic education to qualifying students in Kern County. In its first year, 13 students from three Catholic schools received a total of $10,300, with scholarships ranging between $500 and $1,500 each.
This opportunity is open to students/families who fulfill the following criteria:
Active and practicing Catholics as verified by the parish pastor;
Demonstrate financial need as verified by Kern Community Foundation;
Attend or plan to enroll in a Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)-accredited K-12 Catholic school in Kern County; and
Complete the Peter Anthony Catholic Education Scholarship application through Kern Community Foundation with all materials by the deadline of July 31, 2018.
Thanks to a partnership between the Kern Alliance of Nonprofits (KAN) and KGET-TV 17/Telemundo, agencies registered with Kern Community Foundation will have an opportunity to apply to be highlighted on the morning and evening television news, thereby becoming better known in the community and possibly gaining supporters and volunteers in the process. This competitive opportunity truly is nonprofit strengthening through visibility. All Kern County nonprofits that are registered with Kern Community Foundation and have a Silver or higher rating on GuideStar.org are welcome to apply via the Foundation’s Online Grants Platform. This ongoing opportunity officially opens March 19, 2018.
Day of Remembrance Fund – Funds will continue to be available until they are depleted.
The Day of Remembrance Fund at Kern Community Foundation was established to oversee the consolidation and distribution of funds contributed by Kern County residents to support Kern County victims of the shootings at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival on October 1, 2017, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Our goal is to provide resources in a responsible and efficient way. We ask Kern County residents who are victims and survivors of the Las Vegas tragedy to provide general contact information using our online automated platform. Once the information is submitted, we will provide individuals with the protocols governing the distribution of resources.
Click on this link to access our online platform. Funds will continue to be available until they are depleted.
Would you like to make a difference in the life of a high-school graduate aspiring to go to college? You can help by evaluating their Kern Community Foundation Kern Futures scholarship application essay. We are grateful for media partners like The Tehachapi News that are helping us spread the word about this important effort. Click here to begin reading about how you can get involved.
Bakersfield Californian Reporter James Burger highlights Give Big Kern’s partnership with local retailers, such as Sequoia Sandwich Co., and Gimmee Some Sugar Sweet Co., to raise awareness and dollars in support of the overall effort of our May 1 Giving Day: the prizes that will be awarded to participating nonprofits, marketing material support, etc. The fun began March 1 and will continue through Give Big Kern Day. Click here to begin reading.
Kern Community Foundation President and CEO Kristen Beall shares with the community in her monthly “Philanthropy Matters” column in the latest issue of Bakersfield Life Magazine, how over the course of two months (March 1 through Give Big Kern Day, May 1), two classes of Cal State Bakersfield public relations students will assist participating Give Big Kern nonprofits with communications and public relations support at no cost, while learning about the value of community philanthropy in the process. Click here to begin reading.
Everything you need to know about what Give Big Kern is, how the effort has fared in previous years, and what we all, as the collective Kern County community, can do to make it an even bigger and better event in 2018, can be found in Kern Community Foundation Manager of Community Impact Louis Medina’s contributed article to the latest issue of the Kern Business Journal. Click here to begin reading.
The month of May may be behind us, but at Kern Community Foundation we never stop talking about our biggest celebration of philanthropy, Give Big Kern, which this year took place on May 1 and turned out to be Kern’s BIGGEST Giving Day yet.
Application season is open now through July 31, 2018, for The Peter Anthony Catholic Education Scholarship at Kern Community Foundation.
Day of Remembrance Fund – Funds will continue to be available until they are depleted.
You must be logged in to post a comment.