W.Va. Receives Grant to Support Volunteerism

Volunteer West Virginia announced Friday that it has received a grant of more than $200,000 dollars. The funding was awarded to help the state’s Commission for National and Community Service recruit, manage and retain volunteers. 

The funding comes from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency that oversees AmeriCorps and the nation’s volunteer initiatives. The grant will be used to coordinate volunteers on a number of projects, including how to help communities following natural disasters.  

The money is also meant to help West Virginia communities find ways to better coordinate volunteers, says Heather Foster, executive director of Volunteer West Virginia.

“One of the things we’ve seen in the recent flooding and the recent years, West Virginians are the first to go out of their doors and extend their arms and offer hope to their neighbors.”

This is the first year West Virginia has received this type of funding from the CNCS, although the agency regularly provides money to help pay for other AmeriCorps service programs in the state.

President Trump proposed cutting funds from the Corporation for National and Community Service.