Over $100,000 in grants to be presented to area organizations by the Clay County Community Foundation.

The program will begin at 8 a.m., with an update on the Clay Community Foundation and the presentation of grant checks to organizational representatives.

The Clay Community Foundation has granted annual awards to Clay County organizations since 2006.

The Foundation's purpose is to be a collection point for monetary gifts and donations from both private donations and publicly received funds, from which the Foundation can then distribute the wealth back to the community.

The public is invited to join the grant recipients at the Grant Awards Event at the Spencer City Council Chambers.

After two months on the job as president and chief executive officer of the Maine Community Foundation, Meredith Jones is optimistic about the future of Maine's economy.

As president of the Maine Community Foundation, Jones has firsthand knowledge of the donors who want to share their wealth to benefit Maine and of the frontline agencies struggling to provide social services in an era of declining state and federal subsidies.

The Maine Community Foundation did very well in receiving new gifts last year, Jones said, adding that the organization received more than $19 million in new gifts and established 78 new funds in 2008.

Unlike a private fund, which involves a single donor, a community fund involves a community of donors.

While pleased that new gifts were strong last year, Jones is also acutely aware of the growing demand for help from nonprofit agencies.

The Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties announced today that it will use a civic initiatives leadership grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to launch an ambitious project with the potential to connect Palm Beach County through extraordinary civic engagement and the power of web 2.0 tools.

Called the Community Foundation’s “digital public square,” the project is an Internet-based civic engagement experiment that will allow nonprofit organizations and community members to easily share information and discuss issues critical to quality of life in Palm Beach County.

Knight Grant helps Community Foundation to Create a Connected Palm Beach County – Knight Foundation.