On August 19, The GIANT Company and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful announced the award of grants to 42 recipients of its Healing the Planet Grants.

More than $500,000 in funding was awarded in support of projects that aim to build environmental stewardship by connecting people and families to community green spaces, support environmental restoration efforts and build community gardens.

“Small steps really add up when it comes to healing our planet and that includes the support from our customers in rounding up their purchase at checkout to benefit these environmentally friendly initiatives,” said Jessica Groves, community impact manager, The GIANT Company. “Thanks to their generosity, we were able to double the amount of funding available and provide a greater number of grants than initially expected. We are excited to see the impact these projects will have on our local communities and green spaces as we continue our work to heal our planet and connect families to the outdoors.”

“We are overwhelmed by the interest we received. We are honored to provide Healing the Planet grants, with support of The GIANT Company, to invest in the noble and necessary work being implemented to improve communities across the state and surrounding area,” said Shannon Reiter, president of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. “Thank you to all of you who ‘rounded up’ at the register. Your generosity is directly impacting local communities by increasing and improving access to the great outdoors.”

The following organizations are the recipients of a Healing the Planet grant from The GIANT Company and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful--

Pennsylvania

-- Benton Middle-Senior High School, Benton

-- Blair County Conservation District, Hollidaysburg

-- Borough of Quakertown, Quakertown

-- Capital Area Greenbelt Association, Harrisburg

-- Chester Ridley Crum Watersheds Association, Edgemont

-- City of Lancaster, Lancaster

-- East Goshen Township Parks and Recreation, West Chester

-- Friends of Black Moshannon State Park, Camp Hill

-- Friends of Codorus State Park, Hanover

-- Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg

-- Heritage Conservancy, Doylestown

-- Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education, York

-- Indiana County Conservation District, Indiana

-- Lehman Township, Dallas

-- Middle Smithfield Township, East Stroudsburg

-- Our Lady of Hope Parish, Philadelphia

-- Our Town Foundation, Hamburg

-- Oxford Area Foundation, Oxford

-- Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation, Camp Hill

-- Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Philadelphia

-- SEAMAAC, Inc., Philadelphia

-- Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, Shippensburg

-- SILO Works, Oxford

-- Snyder County, Middleburg

-- Springfield Township, Wyndmoor

-- The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, Philadelphia

-- The Pennsylvania State University, University Park

-- The Perennial Project, Brownsville

-- Warrington Township, Warrington

-- Washingtonville Borough, Turbotville

-- Weisenberg Township, Fogelsville

-- Wildlands Conservancy, Inc., Emmaus

-- Yeadon Borough, Yeadon

-- York Fresh Food Farms, York

Maryland

-- City of Taneytown, Taneytown

-- Downtown Sykesville Connection, Inc., Sykesville

-- Washington County Historical Society, Hagerstown

Virginia

-- Blue Ridge Wildlife Center, Boyce

-- County of Culpeper, Culpeper

-- Farmington Elementary School, Culpeper

-- Northern Shenandoah Valley Master Gardener Association, Winchester

West Virginia

-- Mineral County Parks and Recreation, Keyser

Grants range from $2,500 up to $25,000. Eligible projects located in The GIANT Company’s operating areas within Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, or West Virginia, were required to be on public land or be for public use and benefit.

All projects selected for funding will connect people and families with community green spaces through park improvements, park builds, watershed restoration, recycling infrastructure and related programs, beautification and greening, community gardens, vacant lot restoration, outdoor classrooms, and tree plantings.

The grant recipients were formally announced at the GIANT store located at 1255 Carlisle Road in York, Pa. Representatives from The GIANT Company and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful were on hand to recognize three York County nonprofits who were among the groups to receive funding.

Friends of Codorus State Park, Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education, and York Fresh Food Farms each received a $10,000 grant for their environmental projects.

Funding for the grants was provided by customers at GIANT, MARTIN'S and GIANT Heirloom Market stores who agreed to round up their grocery purchase to the nearest dollar from March through May.

Click Here for more information on the Healing The Planet Grant Program.

For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful website. Click Here to become a member.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates from KPB, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, Discover them on Pinterest and visit their YouTube Channel.

Also visit the Illegal Dump Free PA website for more ideas on how to clean up communities and keep them clean and KPB’s Electronics Waste website.

The 2021 Fall Pick Up Pennsylvania Initiative will be held from September 1 through November 30.  Questions should be directed to Michelle Dunn at 1-877-772-3673 Ext. 113 or send email to: mdunn@keeppabeautiful.org.

Keep PA Beautiful helps mobilize over 100,000 volunteers a year to pick up litter, clean up illegal dumping and beautify Pennsylvania.

(Photo: Representatives of Friends of Codorus State Park, Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education, and York Fresh Food Farms grant recipients.)

[Posted: August 19, 2021]

8/23/2021