Rose Youth Foundation Awards $60,000 in Grants

Rose Youth Foundation, a grantmaking initiative of Rose Community Foundation, has awarded $60,000 in grants to nine projects in four priority areas:

• Inspiring Jewish teenagers to be involved in Jewish life
• Supporting refugees in adapting to life in Greater Denver and Boulder and becoming self-sufficient
• Supporting people who are homeless in becoming self-sufficient
• Supporting individuals with special needs in becoming self-sufficient

The grants were awarded at a celebration on May 6 for members of Rose Youth Foundation, their families and grant recipients. Since its inception in 2001, Rose Youth Foundation has granted $520,600 to organizations serving the seven-county Denver/Boulder community.

This was the 11th year of Rose Youth Foundation. This year’s group was comprised of 23 Jewish youth in grades 10 through 12 from 11 different schools, representing a wide range of Jewish backgrounds. Meeting since November 2011, the group studied Jewish philanthropic traditions, strategic philanthropy and community needs. In February, Rose Youth Foundation issued a Request for Proposals, which yielded 22 requests totaling $279,700. Rose Youth Foundation’s members reviewed the proposals, made site visits and reached decisions on which projects they would fund.

Following is a list of Rose Youth Foundation’s 2012 grants and descriptions of the projects for which the grant funds will be used. Locations indicate the organization’s headquarters, not necessarily the geographic area served.

African Community Center (Denver): $4,000 to establish a computer lab for refugee students. 

Colorado African Organization (Denver): $7,500 to provide onsite child care during adult ESL, computer literacy and social integration classes. 

Goodwill Industries of Denver (Denver): $4,500 to train and certify refugee women as doulas.

Jewish Family Service of Colorado (Denver): $10,000 to support citizenship classes for refugees.

Jewish Student Union (Port Chester, NY): $10,000 to support Jewish Student Union clubs in Denver-area high schools.

Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains (Denver): $5,000 to support job training and placement for young adult refugees.

Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center (Denver): $7,000 to create a community-wide art initiative organized for and by Jewish teens.

SHALOM Denver (Denver): $6,000 to develop employment sites for groups of individuals with special needs. SHALOM Denver is a division of Jewish Family Service of Colorado.

Warren Village (Denver): $6,000 to support homeless families with secure housing, early childhood education, case management and adult education.

Jewish youth who will be in grades 10  through 12 in the 2012-2013 academic year, and who are interested in participating in Rose Youth Foundation, can visit rcfdenver.org/RYF, or contact Sarah Indyk at 303.398.7416 to learn more. View a list of 2011-2012 members.