Eight Upstate organizations receive Barbara Stone Foundation’s Community Innovation Grants to support programming for people with disabilities

The Barbara Stone Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on supporting visionary and creative programs and initiatives for individuals with disabilities, recently awarded eight Community Innovations Grants to Upstate non-profits. The Barbara Stone Foundation makes it a priority to invest in innovative programs that directly support individuals with disabilities through their bi-annual Community Innovations Grants program.

The following eight non-profit organizations were presented with grants totaling $26,500:
1. Bridged
2. Carolina Dance Collaborative
3. Center for Developmental Services
4. Friends of Cleveland Park on behalf of Brook’s Playground
5. Happy Hooves
6. Palmetto Animal Assisted Life Services (PAALS)
7. RECESS (Recreation, Education, Community, Exercise, Social and Service) of the YMCA of Greenville
8. Wild Hearts Equine Therapy Center

“As a non-profit, the Barbara Stone Foundation recognizes that we can’t do it all,” said Lara Ceisel, Executive Director of the Barbara Stone Foundation. “Innovative programs that empower individuals with disabilities and enlighten our community are the building blocks of a community where individuals with disabilities flourish. The Barbara Stone Foundation’s Community Innovations Grants program is a great way to support groups across the Upstate who are actively aligned with our mission and working to make a difference in the lives of individuals with disabilities.”

The 2024 Barbara Stone Foundation board members include Nick Skenteris, President, Michele Reeves, Vice President, Riku Oinonen, Treasurer, Brooke Schmidt, Secretary, Lee Sowell, Matthew Collins, Marion Elliott, Elizabeth Piper, Jimmy Kimbell, Amy Hallasy, Lisa Finch, Audra Vellucci, Dana Gantt Moore and the Honorable Nick Theodore, President Emeritus.

To learn more about Barbara Stone Foundation grants, visit www.barbarastonefoundation.org. The deadline to submit Fall grant applications is September 15, 2024. Details are online at www.barbarastonefoundation.org/grants/application-process. First-time applicants are encouraged to reach out prior to applying. For questions contact, Executive Director, Lara Ceisel at [email protected].

About The Barbara Stone Foundation

Since 1991, the Barbara Stone Foundation’s primary focus is to influence community systems, policies, and culture to result in equitable opportunities for individuals with disabilities in South Carolina’s Upstate. We do this by identifying gaps in services, investing in, or creating our innovative programs, leveraging partnerships in the community, and through our signature initiatives Greenville CAN (Collaborative Action Network) and the UP (Upward Professionals) Employment Initiative. To learn more, visit www.barbarastonefoundation.org or find the organization on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.