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In November and December, students from high schools in each of the five counties met to review 21 different grant proposals for programs and services dedicated to improving and enhancing the youth communities of Kalkaska, Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties.

Each county Youth Advisory Council (YAC) recommended grants from the Youth Endowment Fund totaling $20,000 to benefit the youth community in their county, for a total of $100,000 in grants region-wide. In all five counties, students were faced with difficult decisions in making choices about which proposals to fund. Grant requests were for a variety of programs ranging from pregnancy counseling to teen parenting to tuition assistance for a dyslexia program.

Some of the grants funded in Kalkaska County include the Dyslexia Association Tuition Assistance Program, Host Homes for Homeless Youth, Grand Traverse Astronomical Society Large Telescope Project, and Scenic Trails Council Boy Scouts of America programs.

"This a unique program for youth, because not only does it give them the tools for grant evaluation and understanding, but empowers YACers to take a leading role in solving the issues that face local youth," Jeanne Snow, Community Foundation executive director, said.

During the Community Foundation's 15 years, Kalkaska County has benefited from more than $300,000 in grant dollars from the Youth Services Endowment. In addition, in 2007, the Youth GrantMakers surpassed the $1.1 million mark in grants to youth services in the region. In addition to awarding grants this year, Youth GrantMakers will conduct site visits between January and May for previous Youth Services Endowment grant recipients - allowing students to see grant dollars in action and bringing the entire grantmaking process full circle.

For more information on the Youth GrantMaker program, visit www.4good4ever.org, call 231-935-4066, or email info@gtrcf.org.