For Good Grants Focus on Health, Youth Well-Being and Essential Community Support

Berrien Community Foundation (BCF) recently awarded $239,500 in For Good Grants to Berrien County nonprofits whose work directly supports physical and mental health, youth well-being and access to essential services.  

“Many of our Fall 2025 For Good Grants are addressing the most fundamental building blocks of a healthy community,” said Susan Matheny, BCF program director. “From behavioral health to youth stability and prevention programs, these grants will make an immediate and measurable difference in Berrien County – made possible by the generosity of our donors, whose commitment to community impact allows this work to happen.”

Grant recipients are:

  • Benton Harbor Public Library — Library Support Café – Providing access to a safe indoor space and community support for unhoused individuals.
  • Berrien Artist Guild, Inc. — Audio Equipment Upgrade – Replacing outdated audio equipment at the Box Factory Mainstage.
  • Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan — STEAM Day – Expanding youth access to STEAM education and enrichment opportunities.
  • Bridgman Public Schools — Student Success Project – Providing school-based social work services, essential school supplies and suicide prevention programming.
  • Corewell Health Foundation – Southwest Michigan — Behavioral Health Unit Renovation – Modernizing facilities to ensure safe, high-quality mental health care.
  • Curious Kids’ Museum — Curious Kids on Main Street – Supporting the renovations at the museum’s new facility on Main Street in St. Joseph.
  • Disability Network Southwest Michigan – Ramp Up program – Funding for ramp-building materials to improve home accessibility, safety and independence for individuals with disabilities.
  • EliStrong Foundation — Family Grants – Assisting families of children battling pediatric cancer with costs not covered by insurance.
  • Ferry Street Resource Center — Building Bridges to Opportunity and Sustainability – Providing emergency assistance and life-planning coaching to households in need. 
  • Five Pines Ministries — Snow Tube Replacement – Funding the purchase of new snow tubes for use on Five Pines’ “Grandpa’s Snow Tubing Hill.”
  • Girl Scouts – Heart of Michigan — Growing Tomorrow’s Leaders – Expanding Girl Scouting opportunities in Coloma and Watervliet.
  • Greater Bridgman Area Chamber of Commerce and Growth Alliance – Salute the Troops Playground — Supporting the development of an Armed Forces-themed playground with educational elements in Bridgman.
  • Grounded Incorporated — Grounded Hangouts – Creating safe, supportive mental health and wellness spaces for children.
  • Harbor Country Rotary Foundation — River Valley Elementary Literacy Support – Improving book access for students at River Valley Elementary School.
  • InterCare Community Health Network — Healthy Youth Program – Teaching youth about healthy food and wellness choices. 
  • Junior Achievement of the Michigan Great Lakes — Berrien County Financial Literacy Programming – Supporting financial literacy programming in Berrien County schools during the 2025-26 school year.
  • Krasl Art Center — Ceramics Studio Equipment Purchase – Funding the purchase of equipment to allow the center to recycle and reuse clay.  
  • Lake Michigan College — Digital Scenery Project – Supporting the rental of digital scenery equipment and animated projections for “Big Fish, the Musical.” 
  • Meals on Wheels of Southwest Michigan — Medically Appropriate Meals – Expanding access to nutritious, medically appropriate meals for seniors.
  • Michiana Public Broadcasting Corporation — General Support for PBS Michiana – Providing general operating support for WNIT.
  • Neighbor by Neighbor — Pathway to Home – Assisting families and individuals at risk of homelessness with emergency housing support.
  • Paws of Hope — Preventative Care and Adoptive Readiness – Funding testing, vaccination and spay/neuter services for rescued animals.
  • School of American Music — “My Name Is” Project – Supporting a participatory, intergenerational music project.
  • St. Augustine of Canterbury Episcopal Church — Community Food Pantry – Supporting food access to families and individuals experiencing food insecurity.
  • St. Joseph Today — The “I *Heart* St. Joe” Podcast – Funding the purchase of audio/video equipment and marketing materials to produce a podcast.
  • Stevensville United Methodist Church — Riverside Weekend Backpack Program – Providing weekend meals for students attending Riverside Hagar #6 School who are facing food insecurity.
  • Tarragindi Initiative — Old Jailhouse Archaeological Dig 2026 – Providing funding for a local PhD archaeologist to supervise a dig where the 1830s county jail used to sit at The History Center at Courthouse Square in Berrien Springs. 
  • The Region of Three Oaks Museum — Warren Building Preservation – Assisting with renovations needed for a recently donated building to serve as the museum’s satellite campus.  

For Good Grants are awarded twice a year. Each cycle, applications are reviewed by community volunteers and T.E.A.M. (Teens Exhibiting Able Minds), the youth advisory committee for BCF. Requests cover a broad range of community needs including the arts, children, community development, education, environment, health, seniors, and youth leadership and development. 

“Consistent with our mission, BCF also continues to support humanities and arts-based programs that strengthen our community and add to our cultural vitality as well as funding essential needs,” said Matheny.  “We fund these efforts through our community endowment and in partnership with donor advised fund holders, whose support allows more grant requests to be fulfilled.”

Applications for the next round For Good Grants are due March 1, 2026. For more information, visit www.berriencommunity.org/forgood.