Steamboat Pilot & Today

Steamboat Springs' Advocates Against Battering and Abuse is among a group of Northwest Colorado nonprofits to receive funds from a new El Pomar Foundation program geared toward addressing the needs of Colorado's rural communities.

Diane Moore, Advocates' executive director, traveled to Mesa State College in Grand Junction on Wednesday to accept a $2,000 grant from the Penrose Nonprofit Institute, the name given to the new El Pomar Foundation program.

Moore said it was an honor to receive the grant, particularly because it wasn't something Advocates applied for.

"It puts a smile on your face," Moore said.

The Penrose Nonprofit Institute was created to help identify and address important community issues in areas outside the Front Range, El Pomar program associate Nat Robinson said. The Penrose Nonprofit Institute has partnered with a group of regional leaders to help identify those issues and guide El Pomar grant decisions, he said.

Susan Mizen, executive director of Horizons Specialized Services, is one of eight individuals from Northwest Colorado who was selected by El Pomar to represent Moffat, Routt, Jackson, Grand, Garfield, Mesa and Rio Blanco counties. The eight-member council was instrumental in selecting the 12 nonprofit organizations that received grants Wednesday evening, Robinson said.

The Boys and Girls Club of Craig also received a grant Wednesday. The 12 grants totaled $50,000. An identical amount of money was granted to nonprofit organizations in four other regions selected by El Pomar to be part of the Penrose Nonprofit Institute: southwest, southeast, northeast and the San Luis Valley.

The El Pomar Foundation, which is based in Colorado Springs, was founded in 1937 by Spencer and Julie Penrose. El Pomar grants about $20 million each year to Colorado nonprofit organizations involved in health and human services, education, arts and humanities, and civic and community initiatives.

-- To reach Brent Boyer call 871-4234

or e-mail bboyer@steamboatpilot.com