On Sept. 8, the CHF held its inaugural Community Awards Celebration; five area non-profit organizations received a total of $14,200 in Community Grants this year, including: 

• The EACH Initiative, Inc. (Ending Area Child Homelessness) received $3,000 to accelerate the entry of homeless children and their parent(s) into the EACH Program, where a case manager and a PWC (People Who Care) group partner with the family as they transition from homelessness to a position of self-sustainability over a two-year period. 
• Haywood Pathways Center received $3,000 to provide one month’s rental relief for six families at an estimated cost of $500 per family, in collaboration with the Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency. 
• Jacob’s Dream House received $3,000 to purchase two refrigerators, two electric stoves, and two $100 grocery gift cards at a cost of $1,500 each for two families. 
• Mountain Projects received $2,200 to purchase portable power tools that can be moved from one construction site to the next to build homes in two affordable housing developments. 
• The ARC of Haywood County, Inc. received $3,000 to hire a consultant to develop and implement a strategic plan to address the barriers to affordable and accessible housing for individuals who have an intellectual and/or developmental disability. 

Another $3,000 was awarded to Haywood County Habitat for Humanity as part of the foundation’s Habitat Support Program, which has supported Iredell and Mecklenburg county-area Habitats for Humanity since 2007. The money will be used to purchase materials to frame a new home on Sylvan Street in Waynesville. 

Two $750 scholarships were also awarded to local students, Tuscola High School graduate Joseph Smart and Pisgah High School graduate Walker Beasley. 

 To date, Canopy Housing Foundation has distributed $586,749.70 through the Community Grants Program and the Habitat Support Program to community organizations and Habitats in the Charlotte region (and now Haywood County) over the past 14 years. The Foundation looks forward to expanding and continuing this tradition of support in Haywood County.