Articles Tagged: Nonprofits

After he came to Cedar Rapids from the Congo at age 10, Mugisha Gloire dedicated his life to helping others like him. Now, he's providing the keys to success for immigrants.

A local nonprofit, Central Furniture Rescue, that helps people transitioning from homelessness to a permanent home is having an open house and ribbon cutting for its new “forever home” later this month.

The nonprofit that has served hot meals to people in need since the derecho has found a new home at The ROC Center. Linn County last week ordered the nonprofit to move from its original spot under I-380 along Eighth Avenue SW

Bridge Under the Bridge is in search of a new location after Linn County notified the nonprofit it needed to move from its spot under the Eighth Avenue SW bridge. The nonprofit has provided free hot meals to people there since the 2020 derecho.

The city is preparing to distribute hotel-motel tax revenue to nonprofits, which will reboot a funding source that was halted at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. But there will be some changes to the grant application process.

Linn County Supervisors will discuss and vote on allocating $11 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding next week.

Nonprofits may apply for $100,000 through a new fundraising endeavor called the Grand Impact. Fifty businesses in the greater Cedar Rapids region have each donated $2,000 to help a public charity tackle a new challenge. Any human services 501(c)(3) organization that serves the target area can apply. The deadline is April 11.

Sean Kennedy, a City High and UI alum, is raising funds for World Central Kitchen’s work to feed Ukrainian refugees. He says the group wants the Ukrainians fleeing their homes to have food that “warms their heart as well as their body” at the border.

As part of an initial allocation of joint American Rescue Plan funds between Cedar Rapids and Linn County, the city is using $3 million to add housing units and boost programming for food access, youth engagement and immigrant support

Central Furniture Rescue, a Cedar Rapids non-profit that provides furniture to people transitioning out of homelessness, is moving into a permanent warehouse after years of bouncing from place to place.

The timeline is uncertain for when Cedar Rapids will restart contributions of hotel-motel tax revenue to nonprofits in the 2023 budget year, but the City Council is beginning to allocate federal ARPA funds to restore some of the lost funds.

To date, the pantry and fund have helped more than 20 families, many several times, as the pandemic severely impacted households.

The legacy of the former owners of Armstrong’s department store in Cedar Rapids will live on as their trust gives away $600,000 each to seven nonprofit organizations.

Non-profit veterans group - HERO - that promotes healing through nature experiences will complete founder’s dream this year of building a large lodge for vets and families to use.

“Stories from the Heart: Reimaging Hope” in Raygun in Cedar Rapids at 5:30 p.m. Thursday will feature local speakers on what home means to them. The community is invited to join in and help support local families facing homelessness.