For immediate release:  November 9, 2005

 

Inasmuch Foundation Awards $7.21 Million in Grants to

 Oklahoma Organizations Including $125,000 to Ponca City Organizations

 

(Oklahoma City) ---- The Inasmuch Foundation announced today the distribution of $7.21 million in grants to 68 Oklahoma organizations including $125,000 in grants to 3 Ponca City organizations.

 

Edith Kinney Gaylord founded the Inasmuch Foundation in 1982 to support charitable, scientific and educational causes that enhance the progress and quality of life for Oklahomans. Today, the Foundation is committed to carrying on the immense interests of its late founder by giving to education, health and human services, cultural organizations, the arts, historic preservation and environmental concerns.

 

“The Inasmuch Foundation is proud to support so many wonderful institutions across Oklahoma,” said Robert J. Ross, President and CEO of the Inasmuch Foundation.  “We hope that the grants announced today encourage others to support these organizations that are truly making a difference in the lives of thousands of citizens of this State.”     

 

Ponca City organizations awarded grants from the Inasmuch Foundation include:

·        $100,000 to Marland Estate Foundation for the East Terrace Restoration Project, specifically, to preserve the Italian Renaissance hand-panted ceilings painted in 1928 by Italian mural artist, Vincent Maragliotti. The ceilings reflect the influence of the American Indian on the culture of Oklahoma.

·        $15,000 to YMCA of Ponca City for the United Way Volunteer Center of North Central Oklahoma to identify volunteer needs and match prospective volunteers with opportunities for community service. 

·        $10,000 to United Way of Ponca City for a new Community Aquatic Center featuring a series of three designs to meet a variety of needs:  a family/recreational pool with a sloped entry that is fully ADA compliant; a four-lane lap pool; and a hot tub seating up to 15 adults. 

 

Other organizations awarded grants from the Inasmuch Foundation include:

·        $2 million to Dean A. McGee Eye Institute Capital Campaign for a 60,000 square foot clinical research building.  The building will permit current DMEI clinical, educational and research programs to be incorporated into one facility and provide recruitment of eight new clinicians with a projected 37% increase in patient capacity.  Combined with a previous grant of $500,000, the total support for the building is $2.5 million.

·        $1.5 million matching grant to Lyric Theatre to renovate Oklahoma City’s historic Plaza Theatre on northwest l6th Street.  The Campaign will provide funds for the creation of a 300-seat theatre, an annual children’s musical festival, and allow the expansion of the winter season, Lyric Academy, workshops, master classes, and staged readings.

·        $1 million to Sunbeam Family Services for the expansion  of  the  Child  Development  Center at SW 41st.  The expansion will allow Sunbeam to triple its capacity for children birth to three and double its capacity for four and five year olds.  The increased capacity will provide resources for families living in neighborhoods served by Columbus, Rancho Village, Arthur, John Adams, Stand Watie, Coolidge, Hillcrest, Herronville, John Glen and Prairie Queen Elementary schools.

 

·        $750,000 to Friends of the State Museum of History for a special project that will be announced by Dr. Bob Blackburn during the museum’s grand opening November 16, 2005.   

·        $250,000 to Oklahoma City Economic Development Foundation for the Forward Oklahoma City III campaign of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce.

·        $200,000 to Mercy Foundation for the Mercy Cancer Resource Center, a 6,000 square-foot facility with a reference library and resource area, three family consulting rooms, community education room, and a respite area.

·        $120,000 to Wilson Arts Integration School to build the instrumental music classroom.  Wilson Arts is an elementary school serving a diverse but predominantly lower-income student population. The “Finish Wilson Right” campaign seeks to provide funding for the four arts classrooms to be included in the main school building. 

·        $100,000 to Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation for the College for All program, a partnership with Princeton Review to place college facilitators in middle and high schools to educate students and parents on steps needed for a successful college career. 

·        $30,000 to Smart Start Oklahoma for Annual Community Training.  The training plan was developed by the sixteen Smart Start Oklahoma communities to ensure school readiness for kindergarten. 

·        $15,000 to Oklahoma Lawyers for Children for the Shelter and Home Study Volunteer Program that recruits and trains law students and volunteers in the community to serve children removed from their homes and placed in the DHS shelter. 

·        Grants ranging from $50,000 to $125,000 include The Education and Employment Ministry; McCall’s Chapel School; University of Oklahoma (K-20 Center); and Urban League of Greater Oklahoma City.

 

·        Grants ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 include Ballet Oklahoma, Canterbury Choral Society; Mental Health Association in Oklahoma County; Mental Health Association in Tulsa; Community Literacy Centers; University of Oklahoma (Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History); YWCA of Tulsa; Center for Nonprofits; Girl Scouts – Red Lands Council; Jasmine Moran Children’s Museum; Lincoln County Historical Society; Sisters of Benedict; United Way of Central Oklahoma; University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma; and Youth and Family Services for Hughes and Seminole Counties.

 

·        Grants ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 include Infant Crisis Services; Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art; Oklahoma Arts Institute; Oklahoma City Housing Services Redevelopment Corporation a/k/a Positively Paseo; Oklahoma Humanities Council; Omniplex Science Museum; Regional AIDS Intercommunity Network; Center for Individuals with Physical Challenges; Armed Services YMCA of Lawton/Fort Sill; Family & Children’s Services; Hospice of Green Country; United Way of Pottawatomie County; Vietnamese American Association; Chisholm Trail Arts Council; Land Legacy; Tulsa Area United Way; Tulsa Boys’ Home; Tulsa Day Center for the Homeless; and United Way of Ponca City.

 

·        Grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 include Greater Oklahoma City Tree Bank Foundation; Oklahoma Youth Symphonies; Chamber Music in Oklahoma; City of Elk City, Oklahoma; Henryetta Historical Society; Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park; Oscar Jacobson Foundation; Presbyterian Urban Missions; Putnam City Parents as Teachers; Street School; Windsong Chamber Choir; Tulsa Children’s Chorus; Yukon Public Schools; Duncan Little Theatre; Elk City Housing Authority; Oklahoma Endowment for Reading and Literacy; Referral Center for Alcohol and Drug Services of Central Oklahoma; and Richard O. Dodrill’s Museum of Rocks, Minerals and Fossils.

To learn more about the Inasmuch Foundation, visit www.inasmuchfoundation.org or call 405-604-5292.

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