The Jackson EMC Foundation Board of Directors awarded a total of $43,779 in grants during their November meeting, including $38,100 to organizations and $5,679 to individuals.

Organizational Grant Recipients:

$10,000 to Life Change Counseling Center, Danielsville, to help with rent assistance for office space that had previously been provided for a token amount. The center provides counseling on a donation basis to low-income residents who cannot afford professional counseling.

$15,000 to Rising Families' Food for Life, a Jackson County food bank, to purchase food and supply means for food distribution. Last year, the food bank served an average of 250 families a month and provided more than 250,000 pounds of food through it's monthly food distributions, Thanksgiving and Christmas meals.

$9,600 to the Elachee Nature Center, in Gainesville, to provide environmental science/nature educational experiences that cannot be duplicated in the classroom for 1,600 students in Title I schools in Banks, Barrow, Gwinnett, Hall, Jackson and Lumpkin counties.

$3,500 to the Sanford Men's Club, Nicholson, to assist with the renovation of the Sanford Community Center BBQ pit that the club uses to raise funds that go back into the community for individuals suffering a personal disaster, to assist local community organizations and to purchase complete outfits of winter clothing for 38-48 needy children each year.

Individual Grant Recipients:

$350 for the installation of a donated wheelchair lift on the vehicle of a disabled citizen.

$2,364.30 for medical and prescription medicine bills for a disabled senior citizen.

$2,965 to replace the windows in the home of a single mother whose home is being renovated by Habitat for Humanity.