A grant was made to help cover the salary for a director, fees for core singers and accompanist and music. The funds also help subsidize violinist Joshua Bell for the 2003-2004 season.

Joshua Bell has performed with every leading symphony orchestra and conductor since making his orchestral debut at the age of 14. It is hoped that both children and adults can be exposed to a high quality of artistry, and the symphony will offer a limited number of free or discounted tickets to both children and adults.

EPI works to strengthen democracy by providing people with the tools to engage in the public discussion on such issues as the economy, believing that such participation will result in economic policies that better reflect the public interest.

A grant from the Foundation increased and improved the quality of research and analysis that is disseminated into the mainstream.

By supporting this research capacity, EPI strives to make a difference in national policy debates, the outcomes of which impact tens of millions of poor and working families. Some specific issues include retirement, income security, welfare reform, unemployment insurance, minimum wage, and education.

Initially a small-scale effort to distribute books to children, this organization has grown to attract as many as 1,500 children in Waco alone. This literacy and arts awareness event is held nationally and has attracted a spanerse array of volunteers who use innovative and entertaining methods of promoting literacy.

The event, held at Baylor University, is geared to second graders and features mural painting with professional cartoonists and artists, storytelling by leaders, local celebrities and athletes, and skits.

This grant assisted in the purchasing of books for the second grade children who attended the event.

The mission of the R.E.A.D. program is to improve the literacy skills of children through the assistance of registered therapy teams as literacy mentors.

The Foundation grant supported the growth and expansion of the Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.) program beyond Utah's borders through training materials and videos.

The scope of the R.E.A.D. program is to demonstrate how registered therapy dogs and their handlers can be instrumental in improving the literacy skills of children in an effective, unique and fun manner. Literacy specialists acknowledge that children who are below their peers in reading skills are often intimidated by reading aloud in a group, often have lower self-esteem, and view reading as a chore. The intent of the R.E.A.D. program is to have children read to the therapy animals.

Research shows that there are improvements in reading as the children are less intimidated with animals and tend to forget about their limitations.

The LTP program uses photography to stimulate basic learning skills, particularly reading, writing, and verbal communication. Teachers are trained in the LTP methodology and lead students through a year-long classroom course of photography and writing about their own lives and aspirations.

The students will use the excitement of picture taking to draw students into the experience of writing about four themes: self-portrait, family, community, and dreams. These basic themes summarize the young people's perception since they are the experts about their subject matter and are eager to share the stories behind them.

The program was installed into two middle schools in the Waco area. LTP is expected to increase self-confidence, improve writing skills, provide a communications outlet and allow the students to better understand their classmates.

This grant allows a small rural middle school near Waco to purchase a state-of-the-art weather/camera monitoring system. Various aspects of weather data will be used for enhanced mathematics, science, geography and technology education.

The weather station will train students in technology use and critical thinking. In addition, the real-time weather information is a resource to the community and can be used for televised forecasts in conjunction with local meteorologists.

This partnership provides scholarships for six Waco Police Department Cadets to attend McLennan Community College. The cost of training includes tuition, fees, and books for the two-year Associate Degree in Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement.

The Police Department has a Police Explorer program for interested youth ages 14 - 20 through the Boy Scouts of America. This program serves as a natural "feeder program" for the Cadet program, using interested local youth rather than recruiting outside the City. Graduating high school students will have a clear-cut career path and part-time job, which will likely result in full-time employment at the end of the two-year program.

The Rapoport Service Scholarship awarded 10 Liberal Arts freshman a three-year scholarship. The scholarship is up to $10,000 per year and includes a laptop computer.

A unique feature of this grant includes a requirement for the student to participate in community service during the summer. By working with a nonprofit organization, a student gains knowledge about this sector and the value that these agencies provide.

Students are able to select the nonprofit group of their choice, which benefits from their assistance. The students then write about their experience with others in their cohort group, and work together in a variety of service projects during the year.

This matching grant provided scholarships for McLennan County high school seniors. The students are selected for their grade point average and volunteer experience.

This association has been providing scholarships as part of its participation in the community for many years. Awards were given out at an annual banquet that was attended by recipients, members and parents.

Family Practice, a provider of low-cost healthcare to the citizens of McLennan County, will maintain three school-based health clinics (SBHC) as a result of this grant. The clinics are neighborhood-based facilities that have had a positive impact on the health status of McLennan County children by providing affordable primary health services and keeping children in school.

In addition, the clinics improve healthcare access for adults with limited transportation resources and family members who would otherwise not receive care. This grant provided operational bridge funding until federal funding was available.

The clinics reduce healthcare costs through this type of preventive care that minimizes visits to emergency rooms and costs far less than treating advanced illnesses.

Caring for an aging family member can break down into two difficult options: to send the inspanidual to a nursing home or to care for that person in the home. When a community supports caregivers, their stress is lessened and they are able to maintain the responsibility for a long period of time without compromising the quality of their own life. The elderly are able to remain in the community for a longer period of time with a significant increase in quality of life, which lessens the financial strain on the healthcare and tax structures of the community. The Family Caregiver Support Program performs public outreach, training and direct services to allow informal family caregivers to cope with the demands of care, decrease the incidence of acute care and institutionalization, increase employment productivity and decrease taxpayer-supported medical care.

This matching grant assisted in funding for 8,163 Meals on Wheels (33 meals per day for one year) to Waco's low-income homebound seniors. Often the only nutritious food that these elderly clients receive each day, these meals are served with the help of a large cadre of volunteers. Many hours are contributed in the form of preparing, packaging and delivering these meals. In addition, the Meals on Wheels participants may receive care, attention and referral to other services.

The funds provided a grant writer to prepare a Community Outreach Partnership Centers (COPC) grant through the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Through the use of a professional grant writer and facilitator, various community groups were able to come together about a project of civic interest and benefit. While the grant was not funded, the effort proved useful in securing other foundation funding for a similar program.

The Central Texas Sickle Cell Anemia Association was established in 1983 as an educational awareness agency to help the citizens in Central Texas understand sickle cell anemia and sickle cell trait. The emphasis of this program has been in schools, both public and private, by providing much needed educational materials to medical clinics and designated career inspaniduals such as social workers, nurses and counselors. To date, this effort has reached about 150,000 inspaniduals. This grant supported education outreach in the schools through 86 oral and audio-visual presentations by the purchase of a new computer.

Faith Covenant represents a collaborative of community churches and organizations working together to promote financial literacy, asset building and homeownership. The organization has also secured money through the City of Waco for down payment assistance. Through this grant, Faith Covenant seeks to form a coalition and provide leadership to encourage the use of this assistance and tap other financial resources for the underserved. This grant was used to fund a coalition director, equipment and training. Within a few months, the grant enabled the new staff member to coordinate free taxpayer assistance and other educational awareness activities.

The Freeman Center is a residential treatment facility where medically indigent clients receive chemical dependency rehabilitation. This grant allowed the Freeman Center to improve the quality of life for its residents by replacing equipment and supplies for its treatment facilities. The grant was used to purchase mattresses and food service equipment for a chemical dependency treatment halfway house. The grant also provided matching funds to purchase a chemical analyzer, which determines how a client is responding to rehab testing requirements. By reducing the barriers to drug-free and productive lifestyles, the Center has been able to turn lives around for more than thirty years.

This grant was in the form of a challenge grant for the spring pledge drive. The station wanted to determine support for local programming that could fill many needs in the community by providing a forum to exchange information and conversations on subjects of interest to local citizens. The station since added a producer/news director to produce and coordinate local radio programming including announcements, long-form documentaries and call-in shows.

The multi-purpose Beit Schmuel Community Center is part of a multi-million dollar capital campaign. This is a joint effort between the United Jewish Communities and the Jerusalem Foundation. The grant was designated to this Center.

A grant, made over three years, allowed this all-volunteer organization to fund a part-time director. Parents for Public Schools is a national organization of grassroots chapters dedicated to recruiting students, involving parents, and improving schools. The staff position allows Waco Parents for Public Schools to encourage parents to be active in their children's education and to be a part of the affairs of the district through a multi-faceted program.

This matching grant provided back-to-school supplies and clothing for low-income children in the Waco area. The match was met, enabling more than 400 students to receive a voucher for new clothes, a backpack, and sufficient supplies to start the school year. The annual event is well received by the community and is supported largely by inspanidual donations.

The goal of the organization is to recruit and serve inspaniduals with mental retardation in all aspects of Special Olympics so that they may have the opportunity to discover their full potential. This grant funded the Athlete Leadership Programs (ALP) that allows athletes to find new challenges and use their life and Special Olympic experiences to help others. The leadership programs encourage non-traditional activities that might include serving on a Special Olympics board or committee or as a coach, team captain, or spokesperson.

Talitha Koum means (in Aramaic) "My child, get up!" The program provides the opportunity for children in the vicinity of a local government housing area to "get up," to rise above the injustices of poverty and racism. This grant funded a program called "Making Waves," which provides access to a neighborhood swimming pool, teaches swimming proficiency, and encourages youth leaders to learn to become lifeguards. In addition to providing valuable and much-needed recreation, the program addresses swimming skills and promotes a sense of responsibility among older children.

The multi-purpose Beit Schmuel Community Center is part of a large multi-million dollar capital campaign. This is a joint effort between the United Jewish Communities and the Jerusalem Foundation. The grant was designated to this Center.