Oscoda County food pantries, women’s shelters, and more benefit from $22,000 community grant

What’s happening: Food pantries, women’s shelters, and several community building programs throughout Oscoda County will soon receive some much-appreciated support, this thanks to the North Central Michigan Community Foundation (NCMCF) awarding a $22,000 grant to the Mio United Methodist Church. The grant was made possible by the Community Foundation’s Mabel Hager Memorial Fund.

Giving thanks: “We are incredibly excited that Mabel Hager’s funds will be a blessing to the recipients and give them hope for a better future,” says Nancy Crane, Mio United Methodist Church Advisory Committee Chairperson. “It is an honor that with the Mabel Hager Memorial Fund we can invest in the life of our community to bring wholeness and well-being to Oscoda County.”

What’s planned: Mio United Methodist Church plans to use the grant to support human services and financial assistance programs throughout the county. The church plans to donate food to local pantries and provide support to local women’s shelters, the Midwest backpack food program, and an after school program. The grant will help the church fund a Good Samaritan Scholarship and a women’s spring retreat. Plans also include to use a portion of the grant to fund a new roof for the church itself.

Mrs. Mabel Hager: The Mabel Hager Memorial Fund was established in 1999 following a gift to NCMCF from Hager’s estate. Born in 1901, Hager herself was a member of Mio United Methodist Church beginning in 1933. As it was agreed upon, her designated fund can be used to support charitable interests in the community and the church itself, as administered by NCMCF.

What they’re saying: “This fund is a true testament to the power of endowment and what can happen when people who care about their communities choose to invest in them this way,” says Patrick Heraghty, executive director of the community foundation. “Since this Fund was established, it has provided more than $94,000 for charitable programs benefitting Oscoda County residents through the church’s outreach activities, with a portion of those funds going to projects at the church itself, including a building addition in 2003, per Mrs. Hager’s directions.”