Quarterly Round-Up

Operation Round-Up trustees met in April to review quarterly grant applications. Five applicants received funding; totaling $7,237.20. To date Operation Round-Up has provided $85,450 in funding thanks to members who choose to have their monthly bill rounded up.

St. Paul School in Macomb received $1,237.20 for flexible seating in one of their third-grade classrooms. Mrs. Kayleigh Gray applied for the grant so that she can switch out the traditional seating in her classroom with flexible seating options that will allow her students to release their energy and improve productivity while learning.

West Prairie High School was approved to receive $1,500 towards the cost of purchasing a RedCat Audio System. The school is currently utilizing borrowed equipment, which provides an accommodation for hearing loss students, those with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and the general population. These devices will enhance the learning environment for all students.

West Central Illinois Arts Center was granted $1,500 for their afterschool Youth Arts Program. The WCIAC will offer youth programming, which will fill a void left by the dissolution of the WIU Community Youth Art Program.

Warren County Agricultural Fair Association will benefit from a $1,500 grant towards the purchase of new pens for their livestock housing barns. The pens that are currently being used have been there for 50-plus years. This upgrade will benefit the many groups that utilize the facility, including 4-H groups of Warren County, the Warren County Beef Festival, Section 4 FFA Fair, and WIU Hoof ‘N’ Horn Show.

Colchester Area Gathering Place will receive $1,500 for their summer food program. This group of volunteers gathers resources to provide sacks of food on weekends and during the summer for children residing in rural areas of McDonough county. Last year the group spent close to $10,000 providing food sacks once a week for 249 children.

Applications for Operation Round-Up are reviewed quarterly. The next deadline for consideration is Monday, July 1. More details are available at www.mcdonoughpower.com.