Avista grants awarded to benefit local youth

SANDERS COUNTY - The Avista Fund will distribute a total of $7,500 in grant money to local youth organizations. The Avista Fund grants directly benefit the people who live in and around Sanders County.

 This year, 30 different applications for funds were submitted toward the end of September. The selection process was completed in October, and the following organizations received Avista Fund grants:

Thompson Falls School: $1,700 to purchase an AED and Oxygen kit

Thompson Falls School: $810 for typing software

Noxon School: $1500 for a concert piano

Hot Springs Schools/Baseball Association: $1,500 for baseball field improvements

Clark Fork High School: $1,500 to purchase 8 microscopes for Junior High

Clark Fork Library: $500 to support its summer reading program

“Avista is pleased to make these grant dollars available to our communities. This year the pool of applicants was very strong and diverse, which made the decisions tough for our review committee. At the end of the day, though, we thoroughly enjoy seeing the kids benefit from these local investments,” said Tim Swant, Avista’s Manager of the Clark Fork Project.

 Swant added that in 2009, Avista started the Avista Fund with the Montana Community Foundation as part of our ongoing commitment to being a good neighbor in the communities around our Clark Fork project, which includes Noxon Rapids and Cabinet Gorge dams on the Clark Fork River.