Bath Community Fund celebrates $200,000 grant milestone

The Bath Community Fund of Akron Community Foundation awarded 20 grants totaling $50,000 to nonprofit organizations serving Bath Township. This round of grants, awarded on Dec. 2, brings the fund’s cumulative grantmaking total to more than $200,000 since it was established in 2014.

This milestone was made possible in part by an anonymous donor who generously gifted $13,000 to increase the fund’s grantmaking to the $50,000 level.

Several of the grants awarded in 2022 will support local students in and out of the classroom. “Children are the future of the Bath community,” said Jim Bernard, chair of BCF’s grant committee. “We’re proud to invest in programs that contribute to the physical, mental and emotional well-being of our young neighbors.”

The following is a complete list of grants awarded by Bath Community Fund in 2022:

• Embracing Futures Inc., to support an oral health education program for third-graders at Bath Elementary School, $760.
• Bath Township Service Department, to purchase a large tent for use during events at Bath parks, $1,200.
• Revere Community C.A.R.E., to support a district-wide drug, tobacco and alcohol prevention program, $1,300.
• Summit County Astronomy Club, to enhance the optical system of the telescopes and optimize the public viewing experience at the observatory, $2,140.
• Bath Township Fire Department, to purchase training aids for public education programs and to install emergency bleeding control kits at public gathering areas, $2,600.

Organizations that received $1,500: Apollo’s Fire, the Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, to provide free and discounted concert tickets for students and senior citizens in Bath Township; and The University of Akron Field Station,to support the development of nature-inspired curriculum kits promoting STEM education for students at Bath Elementary School.

Organizations that received $2,000: Herberich Primary School PTA, to build an inclusive playground for students in the Bath and Copley-Fairlawn communities; Revere Power Pack Program, to provide Revere students facing food insecurity with bags of food to take home over the weekend; and Western Reserve Playhouse, to support summer education camps for students in the Revere community.

Organizations that received $2,500: Akron Symphonic Winds, to support a concert celebrating the role that bands have played throughout U.S. history at the 2023 Made in Ohio Festival at Hale Farm & Village; Bath Township Police Department, to support the implementation of a drone program that will enhance the police department’s crime prevention tools; Crown Point Ecology Center, to support workshops to teach adults and families how to sustainably use Bath Township’s natural resources in creative ways; Girls on the Run Northeast Ohio, to support a running-based youth development program for girls in the Bath community that combines physical activity with lessons about social and emotional well being; Hope Meadows Foundation, to support equine therapy programs at Misty Acres of Bath for students in the Revere Local Schools; and Victory Gallop, to provide therapeutic equestrian activities and in-hospital visitation programs for children with special needs and life-threatening illnesses.

Organizations that received $4,000: Stewart’s Caring Place, to provide support services for Bath residents impacted by cancer; and The Heart of Revere, to provide clothing, shoes, toiletries and school supplies for students and families in the Revere community.

Organizations that received $5,000: Bath Park Board, to replace swing sets at Bath Community Park and Bath Hills Park; and Western Reserve Historical Society, to support the restoration of the historic Edward Cranz Farm and repurpose it into a new inn and event center at Hale Farm & Village. ∞