KACF announced the selection of 13 organizations that will receive grants from the foundation this year. “We have really come a long way as a community foundation” said Bomsinae Kim, executive director of KACF. “Just a few years ago, when we started our fund distribution process, we provided funds to just two grantee organizations, and in 2007 we supported 11. This year we are proud to announce that we are able to support 13 organizations that are working to make a positive difference in the lives of Korean Americans and others in the greater New York area.” 

New to this year’s funding cycle is the implementation of the Grantee Ambassador Program, created in 2007. The program, pairing KACF volunteer liaisons with each other’s grantee partners, will seek to strengthen communications as well as relations between the foundation and its grantee partners throughout the year in a more proactive way.  “Our goal is for the Ambassador Program to help build stronger ties between KACF, our grantee partners and the greater Korean American community,” said Kim. 

Since its establishment in December 2002, KACF has committed a total of $635,500, including $210,000 in 2008, to organizations that assist victims of domestic violence, the elderly, disadvantaged youth, disabled and low-income immigrant families. KACF will hold an awards ceremony for this year’s grant recipients this month. KACF will award grants to the following organizations:

• Korean American Association for Rehabilitation of the Disabled (KAARD), which helps disabled Korean Americans become productive members of society in part by helping them find work and enroll in health insurance programs.

• New York Asian Women’s Center, which offers services to battered Asian women and advocates on behalf of victims of domestic violence. The organization also operates a program that addresses the issue of human trafficking. 

• YWCA of Queens, which offers a program that helps young adults prepare for the GED and explore higher education and other career opportunities. It also offers multi-generational and cross-cultural programs in the areas of arts and culture, after-school programming for children, community service and internships for young adults and early childhood education.

• American Cancer Society, which sponsors a program that seeks to increase cancer awareness and access to cancer information, services and programs for members of the Korean community.

• Coalition of Asian Children and Families, which is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of Asian children in New York City by promoting culturally competent, language appropriate and immigrant accessible services. 

• Korean-American Community Center of New York, which serves the Korean American and immigrant community through social services, education and health care education programs.

• Korean-American Senior Citizens’ Association of New Jersey, which is dedicated to improving the well-being of senior citizens and promoting programs that enrich the quality of life for senior citizens in New Jersey.

• Mil-Al mission of New York, provides services for those with disabilities in the Korean American communities and their families focusing on residents of greater New York.