Grants Archive
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Greater Mankato Area United Way
April 22, 2025
Amount Requested$24,500.00
Address127 S. 2nd St. #190
Mankato, Minnesota 56001
Laura Murray
COO
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Website
- Broaden Perspectives Through Art, Culture, Literature or Extracurricular Experiences
Proposal Information
Funds are Being Requested for:Program Support
Mission StatementGreater Mankato Area United Way's mission is to unite the community to secure and invest resources to improve people's lives by focusing on the impact areas of basic needs, health, and education.
Amount Requested$24,500.00
Program Budget$24,500.00
Organizational Budget$4,912,428.00
Relationship to the Olseth Family FoundationYes
Summarize Your RequestThis request aligns with the funding area of broadening perspectives through art, culture, and literature. There two aspects to this literacy-focused request: our annual Fourth-Grade Book Project (Shel Silverstein’s “Where the Sidewalk Ends”) distribution, and our "Kindness Booth" initiative that combines literacy and kindness using our picture book, “The Kindness Booth.” We are requesting this as a non-binding three-year grant cycle. This commitment will be very helpful to our planning purposes to avoid the Shel Silverstein publisher's shipping and delivery issues/delays that have come up particularly the past few years. Having this multi-year commitment will allow us to order books earlier and ensure we have the books in hands to prepare for and deliver to schools!
We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with Olseth Family Foundation for our ninth annual Fourth-Grade Book Project, which provides new, hardcover copies of Shel Silverstein’s "Where the Sidewalk Ends" to area fourth-graders. By giving students their own book, this project promotes poetry, exploration, imagination, creativity, and opportunity for all. We are grateful to the Olseth Family Foundation for continuing this program and providing access to poetry. Jon Olseth brought to our attention that this year, the first students to receive this book in 2017 are now high-school seniors! We have invited high schoolers to join us during the book deliveries as "Legacy Readers." This will bring a meaningful element to the deliveries (as fourth-graders will find it very memorable to have high-schoolers acting as reading role models) and will help tee up celebrations next year for the 10th anniversary.
In Spring 2025, we will distribute books to 1,600+ fourth-grade students and teachers in 35+ public and private schools in Blue Earth, Le Sueur, Nicollet, and Waseca counties. Presentation sizes range from single-digit grades to 150+. School staff and students are thrilled to welcome us for book deliveries and short presentations. At every school, students are always excited to receive this special gift and eagerly volunteer to read poems aloud. We continue to hear from kids and parents how much they enjoy the poems—and how they are reading the book all summer long. We hear comments from students about how their parents have the book, how they can't wait to read to their siblings, how they can't pick a favorite because they have so many, and other positive feedback.
This project and its mission of literacy continue to expand in community engagement. We are again recruiting community volunteers and public safety/fire representatives to help deliver books to area schools. We host trainings for volunteers ahead of time.
In 2025, we are continuing to include our "Kindness Booth" initiative as part of this literacy request. We were excited to release our own Greater Mankato Area United Way picture book in 2024. “The Kindness Booth” follows a group of friends who set out to make the day brighter for their neighborhood through acts of kindness. Geared toward grades PreK-2, the book was written by Greater Mankato Area United Way’s Laura Murray and was illustrated by Andrea Boatta of Italy. Proceeds from “The Kindness Booth” books sold benefit the work of Greater Mankato Area United Way. For the second year in a row, Capstone has continued their donation of 2,000 paperback copies for distribution at all local schools, modeled after our Shel Silverstein Fourth-Grade Book Project. This grant request includes $2,000 to purchase 200 hardcover copies of the book at United Way’s discounted rate from the publisher for us to sell directly as a fundraiser to receive full proceeds. This grant request includes $500 for the cost of additional materials, including creating a secondary portable “kindness booth” to take to all schools and community events. The booth has been a tremendous hit among kids and adults, and a great photo-opp. The Olseth Family Foundation logo is printed on the booth.
Overview of the Grant Request
Population ServedFourth-grade students/teachers; children/adult readers of all ages
Geographic Area ServedBlue Earth, Le Sueur, Nicollet, Waseca counties
List Three Measurable Goals That This Funding Will Help You Achieve.1. Provide regional fourth-graders with a new, hardcover copy of "Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein in order to grow their home libraries, regardless of income level.
2. Raise awareness of United Way's work in the impact area of literacy, encouraging others to get engaged whether through volunteering, donations, etc.
3. Raise funding, awareness, and discussions of kindness/literacy through "The Kindness Booth" book fundraiser.
How Will You Accomplish These Goals?1. Invite regional elementary schools both public and private to participate in the program by accepting the donation.
2. Promote the initiative among the community and media, focusing on not only the initiative itself but also the larger benefits of reading, writing, and poetry.
3. Have hardcover books available and strategize selling at events, presentations, and community gatherings; create marketing materials and promo strategy/outreach, as well as set up payments and other logistics.
Looking Forward, How Will You Measure These Goals?1. Track how many schools participate and how many students are served.
2. Track and share media coverage, community interaction, and other general feedback.
3. Track/log all books sold, coverage, events, and presentations.
Implementation Plan
Start Date01/01/2025
End Date12/31/2025
Describe Most Significant Collaborations With Other Organizations And Efforts.We are grateful for the leadership and close collaboration of Olseth Family Foundation in continuing the Fourth-Grade Book Project since it started in 2017 and supporting "The Kindness Booth" initiative since it launched in 2024. The foundation's dedication to literacy and access to books is having positive change in our region. We partner with schools throughout the region to accommodate their schedules, student enrollment, and teacher numbers. School leaders have been enthusiastic in collaborating. Corporate and community volunteers are an essential part of getting all the books into the hands of students. Public Safety is a valued collaborator in helping at the presentations and encouraging kids to read and be safe on their summer vacation. American Solutions for Business provides a discount for this program's branded stickers. The media has also provided great coverage of this region-wide initiative. For the kindness initiative, we continue to partner with Capstone to print the book and to confirm their additional donation of special paperback editions for students. We continue to partner with Lime Valley Advertising and NSP to create the portable kindness booth and its updates. We partner with local media and organizations to spread the word about this important topic of kindness (most recently, for example: Mankato Kiwanis, Waseca Rotary, KEYC, Radio Mankato, The Free Press, and more).
What Is The Projected Timeline For The Proposed Activities?January 2025: Contact HarperCollins Publishing for book pricing estimates (4th-Grade Book Project). Create marketing materials; strategize media/promo plan. Work with NSP and Lime Valley Advertising on the new physical, mobile Kindness Booth. Begin "The Kindness Booth" hardcover book fundraiser. Start deliveries of "The Kindness Booth" paperback donation (through Capstone) to first-grade classrooms with the physical kindness booth in tow.
January-April (4th-Grade Book Project): Contact schools for enrollment/teacher numbers and request donation acceptance; send follow-up communication; confirm school numbers. Contact American Solutions for Business (formerly Paragon Printing) for sticker quotes. Place book order. Order stickers. Coordinate routes and distribution schedule with schools.
February (Kindness Booth): Contact Capstone Publishing for ordering "The Kindness Booth" book hardcover copies for sale/outreach.
April (4th-Grade Book Project): Contact volunteers for stickering/delivering. Confirm presentation plans and scheduling. Prepare books for deliveries by stickering and counting out for each school. Alert media of the deliveries and invite to presentations. Confirm volunteers. Create scripts and talking points for delivery volunteers.
April-May (4th-Grade Book Project): Host Zoom trainings for volunteers. Deliver books to schools and present the donation to students.
Year-round: Promote "The Kindness Booth" book project and fundraiser at service clubs, media events, and other outreach opportunities.
Supplemental Information
Current Year Organizational Budget
Program Budget For Proposed Funding Period
Audited Financials (if applicable)Other EntriesApproval StatusUnapproved
Greater Mankato Area United Way
April 22, 2025
Amount Requested$24,500.00
127 S. 2nd St. #190
Mankato, Minnesota 56001
Laura Murray
COO
Email hidden; Javascript is required.
- Broaden Perspectives Through Art, Culture, Literature or Extracurricular Experiences
Program Support
Greater Mankato Area United Way's mission is to unite the community to secure and invest resources to improve people's lives by focusing on the impact areas of basic needs, health, and education.
$24,500.00
$24,500.00
$4,912,428.00
Yes
This request aligns with the funding area of broadening perspectives through art, culture, and literature. There two aspects to this literacy-focused request: our annual Fourth-Grade Book Project (Shel Silverstein’s “Where the Sidewalk Ends”) distribution, and our "Kindness Booth" initiative that combines literacy and kindness using our picture book, “The Kindness Booth.” We are requesting this as a non-binding three-year grant cycle. This commitment will be very helpful to our planning purposes to avoid the Shel Silverstein publisher's shipping and delivery issues/delays that have come up particularly the past few years. Having this multi-year commitment will allow us to order books earlier and ensure we have the books in hands to prepare for and deliver to schools!
We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with Olseth Family Foundation for our ninth annual Fourth-Grade Book Project, which provides new, hardcover copies of Shel Silverstein’s "Where the Sidewalk Ends" to area fourth-graders. By giving students their own book, this project promotes poetry, exploration, imagination, creativity, and opportunity for all. We are grateful to the Olseth Family Foundation for continuing this program and providing access to poetry. Jon Olseth brought to our attention that this year, the first students to receive this book in 2017 are now high-school seniors! We have invited high schoolers to join us during the book deliveries as "Legacy Readers." This will bring a meaningful element to the deliveries (as fourth-graders will find it very memorable to have high-schoolers acting as reading role models) and will help tee up celebrations next year for the 10th anniversary.
In Spring 2025, we will distribute books to 1,600+ fourth-grade students and teachers in 35+ public and private schools in Blue Earth, Le Sueur, Nicollet, and Waseca counties. Presentation sizes range from single-digit grades to 150+. School staff and students are thrilled to welcome us for book deliveries and short presentations. At every school, students are always excited to receive this special gift and eagerly volunteer to read poems aloud. We continue to hear from kids and parents how much they enjoy the poems—and how they are reading the book all summer long. We hear comments from students about how their parents have the book, how they can't wait to read to their siblings, how they can't pick a favorite because they have so many, and other positive feedback.
This project and its mission of literacy continue to expand in community engagement. We are again recruiting community volunteers and public safety/fire representatives to help deliver books to area schools. We host trainings for volunteers ahead of time.
In 2025, we are continuing to include our "Kindness Booth" initiative as part of this literacy request. We were excited to release our own Greater Mankato Area United Way picture book in 2024. “The Kindness Booth” follows a group of friends who set out to make the day brighter for their neighborhood through acts of kindness. Geared toward grades PreK-2, the book was written by Greater Mankato Area United Way’s Laura Murray and was illustrated by Andrea Boatta of Italy. Proceeds from “The Kindness Booth” books sold benefit the work of Greater Mankato Area United Way. For the second year in a row, Capstone has continued their donation of 2,000 paperback copies for distribution at all local schools, modeled after our Shel Silverstein Fourth-Grade Book Project. This grant request includes $2,000 to purchase 200 hardcover copies of the book at United Way’s discounted rate from the publisher for us to sell directly as a fundraiser to receive full proceeds. This grant request includes $500 for the cost of additional materials, including creating a secondary portable “kindness booth” to take to all schools and community events. The booth has been a tremendous hit among kids and adults, and a great photo-opp. The Olseth Family Foundation logo is printed on the booth.
Fourth-grade students/teachers; children/adult readers of all ages
Blue Earth, Le Sueur, Nicollet, Waseca counties
1. Provide regional fourth-graders with a new, hardcover copy of "Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein in order to grow their home libraries, regardless of income level.
2. Raise awareness of United Way's work in the impact area of literacy, encouraging others to get engaged whether through volunteering, donations, etc.
3. Raise funding, awareness, and discussions of kindness/literacy through "The Kindness Booth" book fundraiser.
1. Invite regional elementary schools both public and private to participate in the program by accepting the donation.
2. Promote the initiative among the community and media, focusing on not only the initiative itself but also the larger benefits of reading, writing, and poetry.
3. Have hardcover books available and strategize selling at events, presentations, and community gatherings; create marketing materials and promo strategy/outreach, as well as set up payments and other logistics.
1. Track how many schools participate and how many students are served.
2. Track and share media coverage, community interaction, and other general feedback.
3. Track/log all books sold, coverage, events, and presentations.
01/01/2025
12/31/2025
We are grateful for the leadership and close collaboration of Olseth Family Foundation in continuing the Fourth-Grade Book Project since it started in 2017 and supporting "The Kindness Booth" initiative since it launched in 2024. The foundation's dedication to literacy and access to books is having positive change in our region. We partner with schools throughout the region to accommodate their schedules, student enrollment, and teacher numbers. School leaders have been enthusiastic in collaborating. Corporate and community volunteers are an essential part of getting all the books into the hands of students. Public Safety is a valued collaborator in helping at the presentations and encouraging kids to read and be safe on their summer vacation. American Solutions for Business provides a discount for this program's branded stickers. The media has also provided great coverage of this region-wide initiative. For the kindness initiative, we continue to partner with Capstone to print the book and to confirm their additional donation of special paperback editions for students. We continue to partner with Lime Valley Advertising and NSP to create the portable kindness booth and its updates. We partner with local media and organizations to spread the word about this important topic of kindness (most recently, for example: Mankato Kiwanis, Waseca Rotary, KEYC, Radio Mankato, The Free Press, and more).
January 2025: Contact HarperCollins Publishing for book pricing estimates (4th-Grade Book Project). Create marketing materials; strategize media/promo plan. Work with NSP and Lime Valley Advertising on the new physical, mobile Kindness Booth. Begin "The Kindness Booth" hardcover book fundraiser. Start deliveries of "The Kindness Booth" paperback donation (through Capstone) to first-grade classrooms with the physical kindness booth in tow.
January-April (4th-Grade Book Project): Contact schools for enrollment/teacher numbers and request donation acceptance; send follow-up communication; confirm school numbers. Contact American Solutions for Business (formerly Paragon Printing) for sticker quotes. Place book order. Order stickers. Coordinate routes and distribution schedule with schools.
February (Kindness Booth): Contact Capstone Publishing for ordering "The Kindness Booth" book hardcover copies for sale/outreach.
April (4th-Grade Book Project): Contact volunteers for stickering/delivering. Confirm presentation plans and scheduling. Prepare books for deliveries by stickering and counting out for each school. Alert media of the deliveries and invite to presentations. Confirm volunteers. Create scripts and talking points for delivery volunteers.
April-May (4th-Grade Book Project): Host Zoom trainings for volunteers. Deliver books to schools and present the donation to students.
Year-round: Promote "The Kindness Booth" book project and fundraiser at service clubs, media events, and other outreach opportunities.
Unapproved