A tale of Cajuns up North
June 28, 2017
Tournament to be held in honor of slain local player
June 29, 2017
The pockets of a bunch of local non-profit organizations got a good bit heavier this week.
That’s because the local philanthropic group Bayou Community Foundation gave away $220,020 in grants to 29 non-profits for different programming. This year’s amount was the most the BCF had raised in a year, easily passing last year’s then-record mark of more than $190,000.
BCF Chairman Dr. James Leonard said the foundation was founded to build and sustain Terrebonne, Lafourche and Grand Isle by supporting those groups who help residents and neighbors in need.
“Today is an annual day of celebration for BCF as we award grants for nonprofits that are changing people’s lives for the better and making our entire Bayou Region an even better place to call home,” Leonard said. “We are blessed to have these and hundreds of other nonprofits in our community providing critical services that government and private industry simply cannot or will not provide.”
The grants will support a variety of programs that help the vulnerable and enrich the lives of all in the Bayou Region. The Bayou Council Behavioral Health Services, facing budget cuts, will be able to continue its parent education program through the $5,000 it received from the BCF. The Haven received $10,000 to teach a violence prevention program to 8,000 students in Terrebonne and Lafourche, while the St. Vincent de Paul Tri-Parish Pharmacy took home another $10,000 to provide free medication the poor and elderly.
Leonard said this year’s record mark is a testament to the continued generosity of local residents who continue to support good causes even as the local economy tightens the purse strings on everyone in the region.
“We always say that Lafourche, Terrebonne and Grand Isle are special communities, and our BCF grants ceremony today demonstrates just how special our region truly is. In these challenging economic times, with the number of local residents in need of assistance growing rapidly, men and women across our area have opened their hearts and their pocketbooks to help sustain critical nonprofit programs with one gift to BCF,” Leonard said.
