YAKIMA, Wash.- The Yakama Cares and the Community Impact Fund distributed over $1 million in grants to nonprofit organizations. The impacts of these grants will be felt throughout Central Washington including Yakima, Benton, Kittitas, and Klickitat counties.
“I’m with Kittitas County, Habitat for Humanity out of Ellensburg, and we have construction sites, home repairs, sites in our office”, said Tammy Tyler. We applied for five thousand dollars grant for AED’S, so that we can keep our volunteers safe, our staff safe, and everybody that works with us.”
Tyler received the full amount requested. The program selected 172 nonprofits to share $503,032, while larger grants were awarded to law enforcement, fire departments, and local municipalities through the Community Impact Fund.
“Our regular rescue rigs, ambulances don’t do well off road”, said Lt. Keith Schlemlein from the Nile-Cliffdell Fire & Rescue Dept.
“They get beat up really bad and we’ve acquired a military Humvee ambulance, which were converting over for use in our fire department and that’s something that we can get into remote areas and help people, they’ve been injured in a motorcycle accident roll over; maybe hikers that get lost and get injured out there,” said Schlemlein.
Yakama Cares donates funds annually to create positive impacts in the communities. It is funded through the Charitable Contribution Fund. The nonprofit organizations submit their applications between January 1 and March 3. This year, the committee for the Charitable Contribution Fund received 444 applications to evaluate for distribution.
“And so, it’s very important and very admirable, I think, that the Yakama Nation puts these monies out there to help groups like us, so we can serve our local community better,” said Schlemlein.
