Kohala Center Receives Walmart Grant; Grant Deadline July 17

The leadership team for FoodCorps Hawai‘i 2015-16 school year from Hawai‘i Island, Moloka‘i and O’ahu (left to right): Paul Kepka, Kamaile Academy Public Charter School, Wai‘anae, O‘ahu; Natalie McKinney, Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation, Hale‘iwa, O‘ahu; Kelly Perry, Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation, Hale‘iwa, O‘ahu; Andrea Snow, FoodCorps Fellow for Hawai‘i; Harmonee Williams, Sustainable Moloka‘i, Ho‘olehua, Moloka‘i; Michelle Thuma, Shift Manager for Kailua-Kona Walmart; Nancy Redfeather, FoodCorps Hawai‘i Supervisor, The Kohala Center’s Hawai‘i Island School Garden Network, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island; Susie Osborne, Kua o ka Lā Public Charter School, Pāhoa, Hawai‘i Island; Alethea Lai, Māla‘ai: The Culinary Garden of Waimea Middle School, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island; Ryan Holderbaum, Nāʻālehu Elementary School, Nāʻālehu, Hawaiʻi Island. Photo courtesy The Kohala Center.

By Maui Now Staff

The Kohala Center FoodCorps Hawai‘i received a $25,000 Walmart grant to address childhood obesity and food insecurity. Walmart is offering additional grants to nonprofits; the application deadline is Friday, July 17.

The grant will help fund the FoodCorps Hawai‘i’s Healthy Food, Healthy Children initiative that addresses childhood obesity and food insecurity in underserved communities in 12 schools on Hawai‘i Island, O‘ahu, and Moloka‘i during the 2015-16 school year.

“We are incredibly grateful for the Walmart Foundation’s continued support of FoodCorps Hawai‘i,” said Nancy Redfeather, director of The Kohala Center’s Hawai‘i Island School Garden Network, which serves as the host site for FoodCorps in the Hawaiian Islands. “Walmart’s support will enable us to provide Hawai‘i-specific training and professional development for our FoodCorps service members and schools to deepen their knowledge and engagement with students, parents and communities across the islands.”

“At Walmart, we understand that nonprofit organizations are essential to building stronger communities throughout Hawai‘i,” said Steven Reed, Hawai‘i market manager for Walmart. “We’re proud to give back to the communities we serve and are hopeful that Hawai‘i residents will feel a positive effect through this grant and others we are announcing this month in the islands.”

The grants are made through the Walmart Foundation’s Hawai‘i State Giving Council Program, which provides grants based on recommendations from the State Giving Program’s Advisory Council. The Walmart Foundation has an advisory council in each state, which is made up of Walmart associates representing local communities who help identify local needs within each state, review all eligible grant applications and make funding recommendations to the Walmart Foundation. Councils base recommendations on alignment with foundation focus areas, state or community needs and program eligibility criteria.

The Hawai‘i State Giving Council, comprised of local Walmart associates, reviews applications and determines the local grants. Other Hawai‘i nonprofits are encouraged to apply for the final cycle of the 2015 Hawai‘i State Giving Council’s grants between July 13 and 17, 2015. Minimum grant amounts are $25,000.

To be considered for support, nonprofits must submit applications through the Walmart Foundation Hawai‘i State Giving Program’s online grant application. Applicants must have a current 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status in order to meet the program’s minimum eligibility criteria.