Access to Recreation Fund Grants

This grant program was originally established at the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln through a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. A large portion of the original grant was used to support a navigation system for Southwind Park in Springfield, Illinois. The other major element of this award included a challenge grant to create an endowment fund for accessible recreation projects. Many generous local donors provided funds for the match.

The Access to Recreation program aims to assist nonprofit organizations with accessible recreation projects. Accessible recreation includes adaptive sports, games, programs, and capital projects for persons with disabilities and special needs, including: sensory disabilities, physical disabilities and mobility impairments, cognitive and developmental disabilities, and/or emotional and psychological disorders.

This fund supports accessible recreation which provides people with disabilities the opportunity to participate in outdoor or indoor recreation activities without barriers.

Grant Recipients

Year Grant
Amount
Organizations
2023 $5,900 Fishing Has No Boundaries - Capital Chapter - $400
Sangamon County Fair - $2,000
Special Olympics Illinois - Region H - $2,000
The KASE Project - $1,500
2022 $6,500
Abraham Lincoln Memorial Garden Foundation Inc. - $2,500
MindsEye Radio - $3,000
YMCA of Springfield - $1,000
2021 $6,000 Educational Center for the Visually Impaired - $3,000
Friends of Williamsville Public Library and Museum - $2,000
Hope School - $1,000
2020 $5,100 Educational Center for the Visually Impaired - $300
Hope School - $2,640
The Joy of Movement - $2,160
2019 $6,000 Fishing Has No Boundaries - Capital City Chapter - $1,500
Lincoln Memorial Garden Foundation - $3,000
Springfield Art Association - $500
YMCA of Springfield - $1,000
2018 $6,000 Kidzeum of Health and Science - $3,000
Brother James Court - $2,000
The Joy of Movement - $1,000
2017 $6,000 Individual Advocacy Group - $2,000
Springfield Art Association - $2,000
Fishing Has No Boundaries - Capital City Chapter - $1,500
Hoogland Center for the Arts - $500
2016 $6,000 Sanctuary Hill Foundation, NFP d/b/a Bright Star Equestrian Centre - $2,000
Springfield YMCA - $2,500
United Cerebral Palsy Land of Lincoln - $1,500
2015 $7,000 Autism Society Central Illinois - $1,500
Springfield Art Association - $1,000
Springfield YMCA - $1,500
The Hope Institute for Children and Families - $3,000
2014 $7,000 Autism Society Central Illinois - $2,000
Bright Star Equestrian Centre - $1,000
City of Springfield - CWLP - $1,000
Hoogland Center for the Arts - $2,000
Special Olympics - Illinois Area 17 - $1,000
2013 $6,000 Illinois Conservation Foundation - $3,000
Lewis Memorial Acres Association - $1,500
Sparc - $1,500
2012 $6,000 Special Olympics - Illinois Area 17 - $1,500
Lincoln Land Down Syndrome Society - $1,500
Lewis Memorial Acres Association - $1,500
The Hope School - $1,500
2011 $6,000 City of Springfield - $3,710
Springfield YMCA - $2,290
 
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