Heartland Community Foundation Awards $152,515 in Grants to Local Organizations

The Heartland Community Foundation recently awarded $152,515.67 to local organizations in Ellis, Rooks, and Trego County during our fall/winter grant cycle. In total, the community foundation helped fund 35 projects -- including 14 that were fully funded and 21 that were partially funded.

Grant dollars were awarded from the foundation’s permanent endowed funds, including the
Ellis, Rooks, and Trego County Legacy Funds – our largest granting funds. As these funds grow
with time, patience, continued investment, and donor generosity, the Heartland Community
Foundation will be able to grant even more and continue to make a lasting impact in the region.

In Ellis County, $58,324.28 was distributed to these organizations:

• $1,250 to Ellis Youth Action Council, facilitators for two local teenagers, for the Snow
  Angels Project
• $5,000 to USD 388 Education Foundation for the Little Railers Childcare Project
• $5,000 to the Basillica of St. Fidelis – Parish Activity Center in Victoria for exterior
  restoration
• $3,500 to First Call for Help of Ellis County toward the purchase of a new van
• $2,500 from the Hays Optimist Friends of Youth Fund to Fort Hays State University for
  improvements to Sternberg Discovery Room at the Sternberg Museum
• $3,500 to Disabled American Veterans Chapter 18 toward purchase of a new medical
  transport van
• $1,700 to First Baptist Church for kitchen upgrades
• $3,000 to High Plains Mental Health Center for safety features for Crisis Intervention
  Center
• $10,000 from the Ellis County Disaster Fund to STEM Harvest for the Hays Community
  Radar Project
• $4,000 to USD 432 Victoria for upgrades to the high school gym sound system
• $1,000 to Hays Arts Council for professional theatre production for elementary students
• $2,500 to HaysMed Foundation for equipment at the new planned outdoor exercise
  area, Lifelong Vitality: Bickle Schmidt Center for Health Improvement
• $2,500 to Holy Cross Church for stained glass window restoration
• $3,000 to Victoria Recreation Commission for Pickleball Court Project
• $905.28 to DSNWK for medical equipment
• $2,325 to Lovegrass Music Festival for the downtown Hays Summer Concert Series
• $750 to Hays Area Bicyclists for marketing support for new youth mountain bike team
  coming this spring
• $2,000 to Victoria Community Coalition for cleaning equipment for St. John’s Place
• $2,000 to the Ellis Kids Wrestling Club for score clocks
• $894 to Thomas More Prep-Marian High School for CAD lab monitors
• $1,000 to Ellis County Youth Action Council, facilitator for one local teenager, for
  communication boards at local parks

In Rooks County, $35,950 was distributed to these organizations:

• $7,500 to City of Stockton for CPR devices for Rooks County EMS response vehicles
• $4,000 from the Rooks County Disaster Fund to the City of Stockton for Rescue Chain
  Saws
• $2,000 to Rooks County Historical Society for museum frontage sign
• $3,450 to Stockton Public Library for a Charlie Cart
• $5,000 to Stockton Recreation Commission for Kincaid Field fence renovation and safety
  upgrade
• $5,000 to USD 269 Palco for Saw Stop Machine – Woods Shop
• $1,000 to Disabled American Veterans Chapter 18 towards purchase of new medical
  access van
• $1,000 to USD 270 for Paradise Flats Theatre Collective/Cardinal Drama Program
• $1,500 to High Plains Mental Health Center for safety features for Crisis Intervention
  Center
• $2,500 from the Rooks County Disaster Fund to STEM Harvest for the Hays Community
  Radar Project
• $3,000 to Damar Community Foundation for basketball/pickleball court improvement

In Trego County, $58,241.39 was distributed to these organizations:

• $13,072.39 to USD 208 for the highway Crosswalk Sign Project to create safer access
• $15,000 to the Trego County Fair Board for Commercial Building HVAC
• $3,000 to Trego Chamber of Commerce for Buzzard Bash tables and chairs
• $9,000 to Trego County-Lemke Memorial Hospital for C-1 Ventilator, humidifier, trolly &
  clinical training
• $2,449 to High Plains Mental Health Center for safety features for Crisis Intervention
  Center
• $2,500 from the Trego County Disaster Fund to STEM Harvest for the Hays Community
  Radar Project
• $4,220 to USD 208 for Auditorium Video Project
• $8,000 to Trego Sky View Foundation for Portable Restroom Trailer to be used at the
  new drive-in and other places in town
• $1,000 to Prairie Faith Shared Ministry for Parish Nurse equipment & training

This round of grants was made possible by the Dane G. Hansen Community Grant Fund, which
focuses on improving quality of life throughout the county; the Ellis County, Rooks County, and
Trego County Legacy Funds; the Heartland Healthy Living Fund and the Kansas Health
Foundation Fund for Heartland Community; Heartland Action Fund; Ellis, Rooks, & Trego
County Disaster Relief Funds; Trego County Enhancement Fund; Trego Youth Action Council
Fund, and the Hays Optimist Friends of Youth Fund.

The foundation’s next grant cycle opens March 15, with online applications due May 15, 2026.

For more information, please visit www.heartlandcommunityfoundation.org or email
heartland@gscf.org