Community Foundation of the Ozarks

Tomorrow, Tuesday, May 6, at 11:00 a.m. Community Foundation of the Ozarks will recognize more than 100 students from across the Ozarks who have received one or more of the 200 scholarships managed by CFO.

The annual event is an important opportunity to honor the hard work and dedication of area students as well as the many donors whose generosity has helped these leaders of tomorrow take the next step toward their lofty goals. Our wide-reaching scholarship programs continue to be an important means of giving something back to the community by affording young people the opportunity to pursue a higher education.

This year, Community Foundation of the Ozarks will award more than $565,000 in scholarships to 340 students from approximately 200 scholarship funds administered by CFO and its 40 regional affiliate foundations. This includes renewals for two and four year scholarships. CFO manages more than $14 million in assets devoted to scholarships.

A Youth Empowerment Project grant that was awarded to the Parkview High School Green Team and student cabinet funded the Saturday, April 26th student-led effort to remove trash and debris from Fassnight Creek along a half-mile stretch between Campbell Avenue and Grant Street. This meandering part of Fassnight Creek borders and bisects historic Fassnight Park, which features construction elements from the Works Progress Administration of the 1930’s. Nearly 20 P.H.S. volunteers participated in the effort, and they collected nine bags of recyclables, sixteen bags of trash, and removed several construction-related objects from the stream bed.

The YEP grant funded the purchase of gloves, bags, and trash “jabbers” that allowed the students to nab some of the nastiest articles that had found their way into the stream. These items will allow P.H.S. Green Team members to provide stream stewardship for years to come. Parkview freshman Carsen Miller said it best: “The stuff we took out was really icky, but I am glad that we did it. In fact, the ducks that were swimming in the stream seemed to appreciate our efforts!”

Welcome to the new and improved CFO web site. If you’d like to read more about some of the items featured in this spring’s newsletter, we’ve listed the links below to make your browsing easier. If you’re visiting our site for the first time, be sure to browse around or use the search features to find exactly what you’re looking for.

Click here to read about the 11 projects funded through the Louis and Dorothy Coover Regional Grantmaking Program and how these projects will benefit Ozarks communities.

Visit the Harry Cooper Supply Company Campaign for the Ozarks page to get the latest news from the 37 affiliate foundations participating in the campaign.

Learn more about CFO’s investment policies and asset allocation here.

The “Growing Smarter” report from the James Irvine Foundation that featured CFO can be downloaded on our publications page.

A PDF version of the Spring 2008 newsletter is also available on our publications page.