The Y Receives $20,000 Grant from Iowa West Foundation

by Kristi Potts on 10/20/15

Montgomery County Family YMCA receives $20,000 for Indoor Tennis Center Facility Enhancements

Iowa West Foundation grants and initiatives total nearly $7 million.

A portion of nearly $7 million in grants and initiatives awarded by the Iowa West Foundation for Cycle 2 of 2015 will benefit the Montgomery County Family YMCA of Red Oak, Iowa.  In addition to several programs and projects within Council Bluffs, there were a number of grants awarded to rural southwest Iowa communities. The grants will be used to assist 22 nonprofit organizations and governmental entities with funding for area projects. The Foundation targets resources into grants and initiatives that focus on economic development, education, placemaking and healthy families. The Montgomery County Family YMCA received $20,000 for upgrades to the indoor tennis facility.

The Iowa West Foundation’s vision: “A community where families choose to
live, and businesses choose to locate, because of its quality of life and standard of living” is a perfect complement to the Montgomery County Family YMCA’s focus: “a cause-driven organization for youth development,  healthy living and social responsibility”’ said Nick Zimmer, Montgomery County Family YMCA’s Executive Director”.” The two organizations are able to accomplish countless community goals through their relationship”.

The Montgomery County Family YMCA’s $20,000 grant is targeted toward the purchase of enhancements in the Carder Indoor Four Court Tennis Center within the Montgomery County Family YMCA in Red Oak. The facility has become a regional recreational center that allows tennis enthusiasts of all ages and abilities to play in one of the finest indoor tennis centers in the United States.

There are less than (70) YMCA’s in the United States that have indoor tennis facilities and the entire state of Iowa has less than 20 indoor tennis centers. The tennis center opened up in December, 2001. The facility plays host to youth and adult tennis lessons, adult tennis leagues, open play time, family tennis on Sunday evenings during the winter months, United States Tennis Association Junior and Adult tennis tournaments, clinics from a local teaching pro, special tennis clinics from collegiate and former professional tennis players, Iowa high school boys and girls tennis matches, Iowa Boys and Girls State District matches, the Hawkeye Ten conference championships, NCAA Division II & III / NAIA men’s and women’s collegian tennis matches from colleges and universities from Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Indiana, South Dakota, Alabama and Kentucky.

“The Montgomery County Family YMCA has taken on an ambitious $110,000 tennis facility enhancement capital improvement project to keep the Carder Indoor Tennis Center’s standing as one of the finest tennis centers in the United States”, Zimmer said. “This initiative will continue to attract visitors from all over the country to use this center and learn more about the community of Red Oak and southwest Iowa while participating in tennis programming at the Montgomery County Family YMCA”.

With the $20,000 grant from the Iowa West Foundation, the YMCA now has raised $90,200 for the project. The YMCA continues to work with other grant funding opportunities and also is securing private contributions. The YMCA did receive two major private lead gifts to kick off the fund raising efforts.

Zimmer projects the funds will help pay for:

·         Energy and cost efficient LED Lighting

·         New tennis nets

·         Repainting the tennis courts in the current ATP blue professional court colors

·         New blended tennis lines to increase more regional tennis play, lessons, clinics and tournament for ages 10 and under

·         More family tennis time

·         Increase in youth development  through the sport of tennis

·         Increase in social responsibility through the sport of tennis

·         Increase in healthy living for all ages and abilities

The complete project funds will be secured by winter of 2016. The LED lighting will be installed in spring of 2016, with repainting of the tennis courts, blended lines and new nets will be installed in late May, 2016. The YMCA plans to coordinate an open house and donor recognition for the tennis center in the summer of 2016.

About the Iowa West Foundation

The Iowa West Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in the Midwest. It has distributed more than $330 million in grants to non-profits and governmental agencies through southwest Iowa and eastern Nebraska since the inception of its grant program. Visit www.iowawestfoundation.org to view a complete list of the 2015 Cycle 2 Grants and Initiatives.

Funding for the foundation’s grants comes from the investment earnings and the Iowa West Racing Association, which receives contracted license fees from casino operators, Ameristar and Harrah’s. The Iowa West Racing Association distributes funds to the Iowa West Foundation – an independent 501(c)(3) organization under the IRS Code. The foundation makes grants throughout southwest Iowa and eastern Nebraska.

About Montgomery County Family YMCA

If anyone wishes more information about the Montgomery County Family YMCA, potential membership, as well as volunteer and fundraising initiatives such as the Carder Indoor Tennis Facility Enhancement project, feel free to contact Executive Director Nick Zimmer at 712-623-2161 or email execdir@mcymca.com . Or, please stop by to tour the YMCA located in the beautiful Red Oak Legion Park @ 101 East Cherry Street, Red Oak, Iowa.