GRANT COUNTY — Gas City and Marion both received grants from Indiana Wesleyan University’s (IWU) The 29 Project, which aims to “expand early learning services and enhance community wellness throughout the Grant County region,” according to a press release. The funding will be used for Gas City’s YMCA and Marion’s Next Level Trails project, in addition to expanding early learning services.
The 29 Project at Indiana Wesleyan University was awarded $24.3 million by Lilly Endowment in early August, funding a proposal that included three main initiatives: early learning, community wellness, and collaboration and sustainability. The award is from Lilly Endowment’s College and Community Collaboration (CCC) initiative, according to a press release.
Gas City’s YMCA project will include an early learning center, and was awarded $9,619,225 by IWU. Marion’s Next Level Trails received $548,598 for a multi-modal trail in downtown Marion that will connect to the 62-mile Cardinal Greenway.
The grant also funds several early learning centers in Grant County, and will create the Grant County Community Foundation Collaborative Hub. The hub aims to “support community development initiatives that address local needs and opportunities,” according to an IWU press release.
Collaboration and Sustainability
Creation of the Community Foundation of Grant County’s Collaborative Hub to support community development initiatives that address local needs and opportunities.
Dawn Brown, president and CEO of the community foundation, said the investment will spur growth in the area and support much-needed services.
“The Community Foundation was delighted to hear that Indiana Wesleyan University was a recipient of the CCC grant from Lilly Endowment,” Brown said in the release. “This financial investment, along with the collaborative projects planned between the college and the community, will have positive ripple effects for generations! This is a huge win for all of Grant County!”
Indiana Wesleyan University was one of 13 universities selected for the final round of CCC grants, and the $24.3 million of funding represents 30 percent of the total initiative’s budget, which is $81 million. The eight community partners will contribute the remaining cost of the projects during the next five years, according to an IWU release.
“We greatly appreciate Lilly Endowment’s generosity with this grant and deeply appreciate its confidence in IWU and community partners here in Grant County to create spaces that benefit all of our residents,” IWU President Jon S. Kulaga said. “We also are grateful for our community partners who have worked together to develop several initiatives that will continue to positively impact our region well beyond the five years of this award.”
According to the release, The 29 Project pays homage to the words of the prophet, Jeremiah, who wrote in chapter 29 of his letter to the people of God living in exile: “This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile: ‘seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper’ (Jeremiah 29:4,7).”
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