Augusta Locally Grown receives $50,000 grant from Bank of America
Augusta Locally Grown was recently named one of Bank of America’s 2024 Neighbor Champions. As a Neighborhood Champion, the organization will receive $50,000 in grant funding over two years, leadership development, and nonprofit networking opportunities.
Augusta Locally Grown was established in 2008 to address food insecurity in the Greater Augusta area. This is accomplished through education programs and supporting small farms and gardens in the local area in their mission to provide locally grown and sustainably raised food to the community.
Funding from the grant has been earmarked for the creation of a new agricultural innovation and education center focused on education programs and providing services for local farmers. Augusta Locally Grown Executive Director Rebecca van Loenen said, post-Helene, support is more vital than ever.
“So, when this grant decision came, it was before we had a hurricane,” she said in an interview with WJBF. “Before that we were in dire straits with our farming community and now, we have local farms that have been completely inundated.”
“So, to have funds to scale up my team and to develop that, is vastly important.”
Bank of America’s Neighborhood Champions programs supports nonprofit organizations making significant local impact in approximately 40 communities nationwide. It has invested more than $9 million into more than 200 organizations since 2019.
“Providing these high-impact nonprofits with flexible funding and leadership training helps them address critical needs and create meaningful lasting change in our communities,” Ora Parish, president of Bank of America Augusta-Aiken, said.