Tucson Metro Chamber issued the following announcement on Sept. 20.
Cox Charities has announced its selection of Southern Arizona nonprofit organizations to receive $85,000 in grant funding. Youth on Their Own and Literacy Connects are among the 15 recipients who accepted the grant at the annual Cox Charities event.
“Cox is committed to making a difference in Arizona by giving back to the communities we serve,” said Lisa Lovallo, Southern Arizona market vice president for Cox Communications. “We are proud to make these donations to local nonprofits whose missions are to support and educate youth, particularly those in crisis.”
Recipients of the Cox Charities grants include Youth on Their Own and Literacy Counts, to name a few.
“Thank you Cox for your commitment to Tucson and Pima County’s students experiencing homelessness,” said Marissa Washington, grants manager for Youth on their Own. “Your generous grant funds will support 40 homeless students excelling academically with an earned monthly stipend during the 2018-2019 school year. The stipend helps them to focus less on their daily financial challenges and more on getting and staying on track in school.”
Youth on Their Own, a dropout prevention agency, strives to eliminate these barriers to education and empower Arizona’s homeless youth to stay in school. For over 30 years, the organization has supported the high school graduation of this unique demographic by providing financial assistance, basic human needs, and one-on-one guidance. With the help of supporters nationwide, the nonprofit has empowered over 16,000 homeless youth to remain in school and pursue opportunities for self-sufficiency. The funds from Cox Charities will be used to support their stipend program, where homeless students can earn monthly stipends of up to $140 during the school year by making A’s, B’s, and C’s in all their classes as well as steady school attendance.
“Generous funding from Cox Charities will be used to assist Reading Seed in volunteer recruitment, training, evaluation and management expenses, as well as maintenance of the lending library and materials for students for the 2018-2019 school year,” said Melisa Woodhall, grants administrator at Literacy Connects.
Reading Seed, a program of Literacy Connects, recruits and trains volunteer reading coaches from the community to assist children reading below grade level in kindergarten through fifth grade. Reading Seed also offers a lending library of books that matches students' interests with their reading abilities and distributes free books to children to encourage independent reading.
Since the program’s inception in 1996, Cox Charities has awarded more than $7 million to local Arizona nonprofits that support youth and education.
Southern Arizona organizations awarded grant funds this year include:
| Organization | ||
| American Red Cross in Arizona: Southern Arizona Chapter | ||
| Arizona Burn Foundation | ||
| Arizona Science Center | ||
| Arts Integration Solutions | ||
| Be Kind People Project | ||
| Beads of Courage, Inc. | ||
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tucson, Inc. | ||
| Junior Achievement of Arizona - Southern District | ||
| LITERACY CONNECTS | ||
| Live the Solution dba Earn to Learn | ||
| Make Way for Books | ||
| Southern Arizona Children's Advocacy Center | ||
| Special Olympics Arizona | ||
| Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association | ||
| Youth On Their Own | ||
Total grant funds awarded in both Phoenix and Southern Arizona: $543,250
About Cox Charities
Cox Charities is committed to building, strengthening and investing in Arizona’s communities by raising and granting funds over and above the company’s charitable contributions to support Arizona nonprofit organizations that share Cox’s focus on youth and education. Since its inception, Cox Charities has awarded more than $5 million to Arizona nonprofits that share Cox’s commitment to our youth.
Original source can be found here.