Canton Community Foundation News

We're proud to support our community's students and their educational endeavors by offering numerous scholarships. Our program includes financial aid opportunities for students of all ages who are at different stages in their educational pursuits, as well as a number of different areas of study.

Our online scholarship application opens in early January and remains open until mid-March.  Scholarships recipients are notified in May; and funds are sent directly to schools for the fall semester.

A description of each scholarship offered through the Westland Community Foundation of Plymouth can be found Here

Canton Community Foundation Scholarship Winners 2024

Mararet Dunning Foundation supports Local Impact Alliance, awards grant to upgrade technology.

Local Impact Alliance is set to upgrade it's software Pearl to more modern state of the art system from Bromellkamp, AkoyaGO.

This transiton would greatly increase data processing and analysing capabilities of staff members. 

It will also give us the tools needed to continue to engage with other nonprofits, grantees, as well as current and potential donors in an efficient and impactful ways.

The Local Impact Alliance supports the community foundations of Canton, Plymouth and Westland; as well at the Giving Hope, Women’s Giving Circle and Eagles for Children and more than 120 individual funds. With nearly $6 million in assets, the mission is simple: Build trusted partnerships to connect resources with community needs.

The Margaret Dunning Foundation was founded by Ms. Dunning in 1997. She was born in 1910 in Redford Township, Michigan, and moved with her mother to Plymouth, Michigan in the 1920s.

Canton Community Foundation and affiliate of Local Impact Alliance awards grants from Healthy Youth and Healthy Senior Fund.

Since 1989, the Canton Community Foundation has helped to enhance philanthropy in Canton Township and the surrounding communities of Western Wayne County.

In 2000, as a result of a national tobacco settlement, Canton Community Foundation was among 65 community foundations in Michigan to receive an allocation of funds to aid community efforts that support healthy youth and healthy seniors.

Here is the list of Grants awarded to very deserving Non Profits in our Community.

1. Partnership for Arts & Humanities - $2,000 Adaptive Creative Expression. To launch new adaptive arts and movement-based programming at the Village Arts Factory for a youth demographic that has been widely and historically underserved and will benefit from opportunities to explore and build new skills (communication, fine/gross motor, etc.,) while forming important social connections and meaningful ties to the community.

2. Rainbow Connection - $2,000 Special Response for Canton Wish Families. The program will assist wish families who have unexpected financial burdens coinciding with having to care for a child in a critical condition. Along with IMMEDIATE relief in the areas of groceries, gas, car repairs, rent/mortgage, utilities, furniture, clothing, funeral expenses, and other emergent needs.

3. Miracle League of Plymouth - $3,500 Winter Holiday Party an indoor event, fully catered, for all the special needs families (including mothers and all children within those families)

4. New Hope Center for Grief Support- $5,000 New Hope plans to expand School-Based Grief Program in the Plymouth-Canton Community School District. It currently offers the program at the four Plymouth-Canton High Schools (Plymouth, Canton, Salem, and Starkweather). District leadership values New Hope’s program and wants to gradually expand across all the elementary and middle schools (19 schools).