Covington Community Foundation will be hosting its 57th semi-annual Family Night on Wednesday, October 11 from 4:30pm – 6:00pm – a late afternoon/early evening of great food and family entertainment at the Beef House Banquet Hall.

Children and adults will unlock the secrets of nature’s most jaw-dropping places – our very own National Parks! This event will feature a variety of activities that encourage creativity and problem solving. Dr. Drizzle will take you on an adventure to different National Parks to solve STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) inspired puzzles that will allow your imagination and engineering skills to be put to the test.

Enjoy dinner and a show with the Covington Community Foundation.  Experience the exciting world of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) with the presentation of STEAM In the National Parks. 

Tickets MUST be purchased in advance at 135 S. Stringtown Rd., Covington or by calling (765) 793-0702, ext. 8. Tickets are $5.00 for adults and children are FREE. Seating is limited for this event.

Do you have a project in mind that you would like to see come to life in Vermillion County? The Vermillion County Community Improvement Grant Program has partnered with the Vermillion County Community Foundation to request high-quality grant applications for projects and programs that will enhance the quality of life for Vermillion County residents. The program may provide up to $2 million in funding subject to the discretion of Vermillion County.

Grant requests will be reviewed by the Vermillion County Commissioners quarterly in January, April, July, and October.  Application deadlines for each quarter are March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31.

The County is especially interested in projects that cover startup costs for new programs, one-time projects, capital needs beyond an applicant’s capabilities, initiatives benefiting a wide range of citizens, addressing community gaps or needs, enhancing an organization’s ability to serve Vermillion County residents, and projects that demonstrate collaboration or partnership with other organizations. Click here to apply today!

Fountain and Vermillion County are home to many wonderful people who have made a deep impact in the community.

Are you looking for a way to memorialize a loved one or friend who is no longer with us?  Or perhaps you would like to honor a family member, friend, co-worker, or service provider who has a positive influence in your daily life?  MEMORIAL & HONOR GIFTS are great ways to honor those who are or have been significant in your life or the life of your community. Your gift will go to the fund you specify, in the name of the one you’re honoring.

The following individuals have recently passed away and the families have designated donations in their memory go to the Community Foundation.  We honor the following individuals (click on the name for more details): Louise Houmes, Gregory Spragg, Brenda Phillips,  Carlotta Auter, Harold VanDame, Marvin Potter, Rose Martin, Kenneth Scheurich, Stan Shew, Bill Smail, Richard Pattengale, Jeff Henry, Page Lane, Barbara White, Tim Thomas, Harold R. Long, Cameron Cheuvront, Darleen Swingle, Duaine Ramey, Wanda Clawson, Terry Holland, Marvin Shaw, Dr. Francis McGrady, Jr., Matt Milach, Joe Henderson, Ginger Orr, Raymond Bush, Carl Dismore, Richard Klage, David Rothrock, Ann Johannes, Ronald Smith, Charles McKinney,  Joe Hathaway, Edward C. Grubb, Sharon Sue Craft, Henry Meadows, Janice Vietti, Edward “Ed” George, Carl Swinford, Lola Simmerman, Charles ‘Dale’ Clawson, Helen Hoffman,  Martha Drake, Sandy Tuggle, Paul Kent, Harry Hoagland, Ron Howard, Charles Swingle,  Barbara Clark,  Steven C. Dice, Florence B. Fultz, Max N. Hoffman,  Lulu Belle (Trott) Woodrow, JoAnn Murray,  Erwin (Ernie) Johannes, Art Clawson, Jeff Youngblood, Fred Paxton, Mary Bowles, Janet Clark, C. David Curts,  Caleb Duncan,  Patricia Head, Jack Macy, Edna Jordan,  James Kochell, Neva Tillotson, Delores Hicks, Carl Hicks, Daniel McGrady,  Max Keller,  Freeman “Bugs” Lanum, Georgeanna Ford, Bill Deck,  Helen F. Shelby, Elizabeth “Lib” Barnhart, Charline Allen, Jeffry Ingalsbe, John Woodrow, Carol Gooding,  Richard “Dick” Shelby, Betty Shull, Marvel Dunham, Mary K. Young, Marcia Cooper, Carol V. Myers, James “Jim” McCormick, Rosemarie Haas, Marilyn Gebbink, Jean (Frances) Blickenstaff, Robert “Bob” Branam, Larry Carlson, John Cotten, Sr., Mirriam (Newmark) Fogel, Helen Freas, Heidi (Shambach) Johnson, Joan Rennick, Vicki (Collins) Stevens, and Arley White.

All memorial and honor gifts are acknowledged to the person or people you designate so that the loved one’s family, or the person you are honoring, is aware of the gift.  Or you can make an anonymous gift if you desire to do so.  The amount of the gift is, of course, confidential and only you will receive a gift acknowledgement for tax purposes.  It’s very easy to give a memorial or honor gift – just CLICK HERE to get started.

Congratulations to recent grant recipients:
Wildcat Christmas Store ($2,000), Covington Youth Soccer ($46,793.66), Food Finders Food Bank ($4,000), Williamsport Firefighters & Auxiliary ($3,000), Attica Elementary School ($5,000), Covington Elementary School ($2,500), Vermillion Trails Alliance ($1,000), Southeast Fountain School Corporation ($4,000), Seeger Film Club ($1,500), Covington Elementary School ($3,500), Sugar Creek Resource Center ($3,000), Attica Heritage Days ($5,000), City of Covington ($1,000), North Vermillion High School ($2,000), Community Action Program of Western Indiana ($2,150), Vermillion Trails Alliance ($5,000), Covington High School After Prom ($3,950), Attica Public Library ($4,599), American Red Cross ($2,500), Covington Tree Committee ($10,000), South Vermillion Middle School ($1,500), Clinton Girls Softball ($3,000), North Vermillion Little League ($4,900), Fountain Central Jr/Sr High School ($2,500), Covington Public Library ($10,000), Veedersburg Public Library ($7,000), Black Diamond Fire Department ($7,300), Attica Jr/Sr High School ($10,000),  More →

The Terry A. Badger III Scholarship Fund has been established to benefit area high school seniors who graduate from a Wabash River Conference High School.  Primarily, the scholarship will benefit those students who excel academically and who exhibit exceptional performance in high school baseball.  Terry A. Badger III passed away at his home in Covington on March 6, 2023, at the age of 13.

Terry loved to participate in sports especially basketball and soccer, but his biggest passion was baseball. He enjoyed “parking lot” football and Blitzball. He also collected baseball cards and loved playing the card game, Uno. Terry enjoyed fishing, hunting as well as going mushroom hunting and going on rides on the 4-wheeler and on “Grandpa’s Mule”.  He loved to sing, and he didn’t know a stranger.

Dale White, CEO of the Community Foundation says, “It’s a privilege for the Community Foundation to be the steward of donated monies that will benefit students throughout the Western Indiana area. We appreciate the generosity of those who have contributed and want to be a part of keeping Terry’s memory alive.”

The applicant(s) for the scholarship must be accepted as a part- or full- time (minimum of 6 hours) student at a trade or technical school or a two-year or four-year public or private college or university.

The first scholarships will be awarded in the Spring of 2024.

Contributions in memory of Terry are tax deductible and can be made online at www.wicf-inc.org or mailed to: Western Indiana Community Foundation, ATTN: Terry A. Badger III Scholarship Fund, PO Box 175, Covington, IN 47932.

This fund has been established to assist in providing support for the fire and rescue services of the Jackson Township Fire Department.

The support of fire and rescue services may include but are not limited to: services that offer protection, safety, and education to the public, training programs that prepare skilled volunteers with the knowledge to perform their duties, regular operating support for the Jackson Township Volunteer Fire Department includes, but is not limited to occupancy costs (utilities, insurance, technology, supplies), staff development, marketing and public relations expenses, etc., start-up costs for new initiatives and programs associated with and/or offered by the Jackson Township Volunteer Fire Department, and capital costs associated with the fire and rescue services, including the purchasing of equipment, facility upgrades, expansion, re-location, etc.

Forty-One (41) new endowment funds have recently been established to benefits area communities and high school students.  For more details click on the link to learn more about each fund.

The new funds include: Paul & Pat Coolley Fund,  Terry A. Badger III Scholarship Fund, Jackson Township Fire Department Fund, Coal Creek Cemetery Endowment & Pass-Through Funds, Edward A. Larson, Jr. Scholarship Fund, Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund, Pay It Forward Scholarship Fund, Cameron Cheuvront Memorial Scholarship Fund, William, Johanna, and Mark Wilson Scholarship Fund, Vermillion County Community Improvement Fund, Nancy Bourne Benevolent Fund, Retha Dean (Coffing) Martin Scholarship Fund, The Strawser Family & Jim & Wanda Clawson Scholarship Fund, Joseph D. Henderson Family Fund, Clinton High School Memorial Monument Fund, Rick Randles Art & Music Appreciation Fund,  Scott Stanton Scholarship Fund, Mandy Stanton Cancer Fund, Dr. Robert E. & Marceline A. Dicks Indiana State Medical School Scholarship, LIVINGenerously Donor-Advised Fund, Harold & Jean Rieches Scholarship Fund, Lee & Thelma T. Clingan Fund, Anna & Les Zimmerman Fund,  Charles Todd Wagoner Scholarship Fund,  Mariah (Martin) Zabriskie & Sean Zabriskie Scholarship Fund,  William & Nellie Hendrix Scholarship Fund, Carl Swinford Memorial Scholarship Fund, Ellis Family Scholarship Fund, Dr. Robert & Sue Ewbank Scholarship Fund, Yale & Orthanna Yager Scholarship Fund, Carol Shew Nursing Scholarship Fund,  Christy DeSutter Cancer Fund,  Kay Shoaf Scholarship Fund, Randall G. Shoaf Scholarship Fund, Robert & Lucreita (Verrill) Shoaf Scholarship Fund,  Patricia Scherer Leath Education Scholarship Fund, William, Johanna & Mario Wilson Charitable Community Fund,  Darrell & Edith Dennis Community Fund, Daniel & Renee McGrady Family Fund,  CDH Scholarship Fund, Wallace-Minnette Community Fund, George Norman Family Fund, Mark & Cindy Mason Community Fund, and the Michael & Mary Margaret Rhees Community Fund.

To learn how you can establish a fund to benefit your community contact Dale at (765) 793-0702 or by email at dwhite@wicf-inc.org.

Touch here to see the entire listing of scholarship recipients awarded by the Community Foundation at the following Senior Awards Programs:

South Vermillion High School
Covington High School
Fountain Central High School
North Vermillion High School
Attica High School

The goal of the Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund is to keep Ernie Pyle’s legacy alive and in doing so honoring the memory of those who served.

Located in the west-central Indiana town of Dana, the site features Ernie Pyle’s birthplace and a museum highlighting the famous journalist’s life and writings as a correspondent during World War II.  The historic site is owned and operated by the Friends of Ernie Pyle, a nonprofit organization (federal tax ID number: 35-1866228) dedicated to the preservation and advancement of Pyle’s legacy in Dana, as well as throughout Indiana and the nation.

Pyle was born on August 3, 1900, to a tenant farm family just outside of Dana. He was an only child. He was educated in local schools and studied journalism at Indiana University-Bloomington before setting out on his newspaper career.  He maintained contact with his family and hometown throughout his life. He was on assignment as a war correspondent when he died on April 18, 1945, after being struck by a Japanese machine gunner’s bullet on Ie Shima, a small island near Okinawa in the South Pacific. He was 44 years old.

The house in which Pyle was born was rescued from demolition in the mid-1970s and restored by an upstart organization which became the Friends of Ernie Pyle. A local fundraising effort allowed the house to be moved from its original rural location into the town of Dana. It was dedicated as an Indiana state historic site in 1976.

The site in its expanded form was re-dedicated with a new museum in 1995 and operated by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources until December 2009, when it was closed due to state financial cutbacks. In September 2010, the Friends re-opened the site through special arrangement with the state. In fall 2011, the State of Indiana gave ownership of the site to the Friends of Ernie Pyle.  On Jan. 1, 2012, the site was renamed the Ernie Pyle World War II Museum.

One of the purposes of the Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund and the Ernie Pyle WWII Museum is to promote awareness and understanding of the legacy and times of WWII correspondent Ernie Pyle.  The museum also aims to provide a place where relevant educational programs can be provided.  In addition, the Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund may support programs and projects associated with Ernie Pyle and the Ernie Pyle World War II Museum such as, but not limited to: the regular operating support of the Museum, startup costs for new initiatives offered by the Friends of Ernie Pyle, and capital costs associated with the Ernie Pyle World War II Museum, including equipment, repair and/or remodeling of facilities, new facilities, etc.

Contributions to the Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund are tax deductible and can be made online at www.wicf-inc.org or mailed to: Vermillion County Community Foundation, ATTN: Friends of Ernie Pyle Endowment Fund, PO Box 532, Clinton, IN 47842.

The Pay It Forward Scholarship Fund has been established for the benefit of worthy student(s) who graduate from Covington, Attica, or Fountain Central High School.

The donor family values integrity and hard work.  They hope this scholarship not only helps the recipient in further education, but also prepares him or her for serving others.

The applicant(s) must be pursuing a field of study or career in the trades and technical education pathway.  Trade schools come in a wide variety of forms – some may be a part of an associate degree program, and some are totally autonomous.  A major thought behind the scholarship is that trade schools and technical education programs provide specialized education for trade-based careers that focus specifically on job-related skills and does not typically require an advanced degree (bachelor and/or associate degrees).

Applicants for The Pay It Forward Scholarship must be pursuing a career trade such as aviation, machining, dental, electrical, welding, medical, plumbing, robotics, construction, and the like.  This is not an exhaustive list; however, one of the key intentions of the scholarship is to provide an award to a student who is pursuing a career that is reflective of trade work.

The scholarship award is in the amount of $10,000.  Fifty percent ($5,000) will be awarded for a student in their first year of trade or technical school.  An additional $5,000 will be provided for their second year.

Donations to The Pay It Forward Scholarship may be made online at www.wicf-inc.org or mailed to: Western Indiana Community Foundation, Attn: The Pay It Forward Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 175, Covington, IN 47932.