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The Wellmark Foundation awards more than $674,000 in Small MATCH grants

December 2, 2021

Des Moines, IA — The Wellmark Foundation has provided 29 Iowa organizations with their Small Matching Assets to Community Health (MATCH) grant awards. These organizations were notified in August of their pending awards and had 12 weeks to secure the required matching funds. Small MATCH grant recipients were able to use a combination of in-kind donations, services, and cash in order to receive their award from The Wellmark Foundation. All the funded projects will help individuals, families and communities achieve better health through built environment initiatives that encourage physical activity or access to and consumption of nutritious foods.

"The Wellmark Foundation is proud to award a total of $674,664 to these 29 Iowa organizations," said Mary Lawyer, The Wellmark Foundation executive director. "The projects these organizations are implementing will enhance the quality of life and the overall well-being of citizens in their communities for several generations."

Since its inception in 1991, The Wellmark Foundation has provided more than $39 million in grant funding to communities across Iowa and South Dakota.

The 29 Iowa organizations awarded a Wellmark Foundation 2021 Small MATCH grant include:

Catherine McAuley Center, $25,000
Improving food security and building healthy eating, Cedar Rapids

City of St. Charles, $25,000
Basketball and Pickleball Court

City of Cedar Rapids, $25,000
Playground at Bever Park

City of Tipton, $25,000
4th Street Plaza Pocket Park

City of Dallas Center, $23,027
Accessible Pathways Project

Des Moines Area MPO, $24,575
MPO Permanent Trail Counter Program

City of DeWitt, $25,000
Outdoor Pickleball Courts

Diagonal Community Development Corporation, $25,000
Diagonal Walkable Community Initiative

City of Epworth, $25,000
Splash Pad

FoodCorps Iowa, $22,000
Connecting Kids in Des Moines to Healthy Food in Schools

City of Keota, $25,000
Municipal Pool Replacement Project

Forest Avenue Outreach, $15,062
Community Orchard & Garden – Accessible Entrance & Outdoor Classroom, Des Moines

City of Lansing, $25,000
Lansing Trails Expansion & Promotion Project

Glenwood Rams Parent Teacher Association, $25,000
NE Elementary Inclusive Playground Project

City of Madrid, $10,000
Edgewood Park — Toddler Expansion

Mahaska FutureView, $25,000
Edmundson Playground Project

City of Manson, $25,000
Manson Youth Sports Complex

Metro High School, $25,000
STEAM Grown Education, Cedar Rapids

City of Mason City, $25,000
Willow Creek Riverwalk

North Cedar Community School District, $25,000
Mechanicsville Memorial Walking Trail

City of Pocahontas, $25,000
Elbert Park Improvement Project — Phase II

River Bend Food Bank, $25,000
Expanding to Shrink the Gap, Davenport

City of Polk City, $25,000
Lost Lakes Park — Phase II Development

The Fairfield Parks and Recreation Foundation of Jefferson County, Iowa, $25,000
The Fairfield Loop Trail Surface Upgrade

City of Preston, $25,000
Westside Park Obstacle & Fitness Course

University of Northern Iowa Foundation, $5,000
A Garden in Every Lot, Cedar Falls and Waterloo

City of Sloan, $25,000
City Park Trail Head

Wesley Retirement Services Inc., $25,000
Halcyon House Pickleball & Community Garden Project, Washington

Winneshiek County Conservation Board, $25,000
Dry Run Trail — Decorah to the Greenbelt

Learn more about these projects.