Looking back on a year of transformation, with anticipation for the New Year
The Quad Cities Community Foundation staff recently took some time to acknowledge our organizational accomplishments and all the good things people like you have done this year—from leaving a legacy that will impact our community for decades to the random acts of kindness that give the Quad Cities incredible heart. It has been a year unlike any other, and we are so grateful to have you as part of our work.
More than a year ago, we rolled out a new mission to transform our region through the generosity of our donors. In 2016, that mission was met in a number of different ways. One outcome that rises above the rest, though, is the transformation that has occurred in an area of our community that has needed collective attention—homelessness and poverty.
Last December, we announced our very first Transformation Grant to the Quad Cities Housing Cluster. As you may recall, the $100,000 award came with a challenge to the Scott County Housing Council to match half the grant with another $50,000 from the community. We are pleased to share that last month, they met that challenge thanks to the generosity of people like you.
It wasn't the dollars raised made us excited for this group of people who are transforming our region. Rather, it was the reality that the right amount of dollars in the right placehelped get someone off the street and into a home—137 individuals in 63 households, to be exact. Of those, 34 were families with a total of 67 children.
The grant—and the Quad Cities Housing Cluster's work—proved that when we bring together different resources and perspectives, we can challenge the status quo for social and economic growth in our region.
That, indeed, we can transform the region together.
Before the grant, only two agencies were providing rapid re-housing services, but the funding was restricted and limited—often running out within months. With the new funding, the Quad Cities Housing Cluster partnered with Bethany for Children and Families, Humility of Mary Shelter - VALOR, Humility of Mary Housing, Salvation Army of the Quad Cities, Project NOW and Family Resources - SafePath Survivor Resources.
People and groups, combining their ingenuity and creative know-how to collaborate and make a big impact, transforming the way we tackle homelessness and poverty here in our community. And because of the Community Foundation's grant, additional dollars have been secured to sustain this program to serve even more homeless families and children.
We're not stopping in 2017. Our Board of Directors renewed their commitment to transforming our region, making decisions on the next big opportunity through a Transformation Grant.
In anticipation of the New Year, we're going to leave you in a little suspense—be on the lookout for a very special announcement on how the generosity of our community is about to make another transformative impact in January. We cannot wait to celebrate the news with you.