CARES earns DuPage Foundation Grant

NAPERVILLE, Ill. - June 19, 2015 - PRLog -- Naperville, IL—Naperville CARESwas one of 28 not-for-profit organizations in DuPage County to receive a grant from the 2015 Spring Community Needs Grant Cycle of the DuPage Foundation.  The grant, awarded during a special distribution breakfast on Tuesday, June 16, 2015 at the Glen Oak Country Club, will help underwrite the CARES Emergency Assistance Program, which provides financial support to clients towards rent and utilities, as a means of preventing homelessness.

The total of all grants awarded during this cycle, whose amounts ranged in value from $2,000 - $20,000, was $400,001.  Community leaders, Foundation trustees, benefactors and other stakeholders attended the event.

Foundation Director of Programs Barb Szczepaniak shared her pleasure with the Foundation’s support of local organizations:  “We are thrilled to have reached a major milestone this grant cycle by awarding more than $400,000 to support DuPage health and human services programs.  Local not-for-profit organizations work extremely hard to serve those in need in our community and we are pleased that our financial support can help them expand their efforts.”

The Foundation also makes grants to DuPage County not-for-profits working in the areas of Arts and Culture, Education and the Environment during its annual Fall Community Needs Grant Cycle.  That most recent cycle awarded more than $207,000 to 29 agencies this past December.  In addition, the Foundation makes grants throughout the year to a range of not-for-profits throughout DuPage County and beyond from its various donor-advised and other restricted funds. (The list of these grant awards may also be found at www.dupagefoundation.org.)

About Naperville CARES

Headquartered in Naperville, IL, since 1999, Naperville CARES is where the community comes together to ensure all our neighbors have access to resources to meet their essential needs. The CARES Emergency Assistance Program, which provides emergency financial assistance to pay for basic needs like rent and utilities, is a very effective model for preventing homelessness in our community. The goal of the CARES Car Program is to help individuals maintain employment by providing reliable transportation by either providing a client with a donated vehicle or repairing client owned vehicles. Naperville CARES welcomes your support of Toasting for a Cause, Cuisine for a Cause, CARESGiver, CARES Car Donation program and other events. For more information visit www.NapervilleCARES.org (http://www.napervillecares.org/#_blank).

About the DuPage Foundation

The DuPage Foundation seeks to raise the quality of life throughout DuPage County by fostering philanthropy, connecting donors to area needs and building community partnerships.  Based on the American virtues of volunteerism and philanthropy, the Foundation fosters a legacy of support for the people of DuPage County by making grants to not-for-profit organizations working in the areas of arts and culture, education, environment, health, and human services.  Since its inception, the Foundation has built its endowment to more than $63 million and awarded more than $22 million in grants to not-for-profit agencies serving the residents of DuPage County and beyond.

Established in 1986, the DuPage Foundation is a publicly-supported 501(c)(3) organization to which contributions are tax deductible.  It was created to benefit the people of DuPage County and receives contributions and bequests into a permanent endowment from individuals, corporations, organizations and foundations wishing to make lasting contributions to the people of DuPage.  The earnings on these funds are then used, in accordance with donor wishes, for the Foundation’s grantmaking and community leadership activities.

For more information about the Foundation, or to arrange future media opportunities, please contact Joelyn Kundrot, marketing & communications officer, at (630) 665-5556, extension 19, or joelyn@dupagefoundation.org.