Three Local Nonprofits Receive Grants from Community Foundation of the Lowcountry

Community Foundation of the Lowcountry has awarded $112,518 to three local nonprofits. Awardees are:

Coastal Discovery Museum received a two-year grant for $70,000 to develop a conceptual plan for a new facility, including architectural renderings and a strategic fundraising plan to secure the funding needed to undertake the project. Coastal Discovery Museum has reached capacity in several areas of programming, including school groups and exhibition space. This means they have to turn away some school groups and traveling exhibitions simply due to lack of space. A new building will help the organization meet the growing community interest in programs and services.

The Outside Foundation will use their $10,280 grant to expand their community-based oyster shell recycling and bed restoration project. Phase I of the program has been very successful; Phase II will allow them to increase marketing and outreach resulting in the recycling of more shells. The grant will also provide funding to purchase a trailer so gathered shells can be transported.

Volunteers in Medicine Clinic, Hilton Head received a $32,238 grant that will fund the purchase of five Dragon Medical Practice transcribers, which will be utilized by volunteer physicians, and five Dell tablets for volunteer nurses. The voice recognition transcribers will efficiently capture patient information, increasing productivity and accuracy. The tablets will speed efficiency. In addition, the grant will fund the hiring of two consultants, one who will improve operational efficiency and the other will help analyze data collected to demonstrate the positive impact VIM has in the community.

This is the second of three annual community impact grant cycles the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry undertakes each year. In November 2018, the Community Foundation awarded $120,590 to two local nonprofit organizations. The final awards for fiscal year 2019 will be announced in June.