Three new funds have been established at the Carbon County Community Foundation, including two scholarships and a field of interest fund to assist families who suffer a house fire.

• Vahnne’s Piggy Bank Fund was established by family and loved ones to honor the life of Vahnne Gower, who passed away in a house fire in 2017.

The purpose of the fund is to help bring joy and relief to children who have experienced loss of home and/or personal property in emergency events such as a house fire.

Following the Gowers’ house fire, one of the items that remained in Vahnne’s room was her piggy bank.

Her Girl Scout troop, (Troop 33, Mahoning Township), painted piggy banks and placed them in the community to take up a collection for funds to help other children who experienced house fires. The fund aims to carry on this tradition.

Children 15 and younger in the Carbon County region who experience loss of home or property, from house fire, flood or other disaster, may apply to receive one of Vahnne’s piggy banks, which may include a cash gift of $50 to be used at the child’s discretion to replace something lost in the incident. Plans are in the works to offer affected families further support.

• The Orioles Scouting Fund was established by the Fraternal Order of Orioles, Lehighton Nest 183, to provide financial assistance for higher education to participants (male or female) in the Boy Scouts of America or Girl Scouts of the USA in Carbon County. The Orioles Scouting Scholarship will be a one-year $500 scholarship awarded annually to a qualified graduating high school senior residing in Carbon County.

Both the Vahnne’s Piggy Bank and Orioles Scouting Scholarship funds have been created as endowments. This means the funds are invested in the market, managed by professional advisers along with the foundation’s other invested assets, with the goal of achieving modest growth. Proceeds from the funds will be distributed for the benefit of the community in accordance with both the donors’ wishes and according to the foundation’s policies.

“The Community Foundation offers a type of charitable giving that is new in our region, but has been a proven model for success in communities across the country for more than one hundred years,” said CCCF President Amber Breiner. “By investing charitable funds, we aim to keep local resources working for our communities and growing the amount we are able to distribute over time to meet our growing and ever-changing needs.”

• The Tyler Strong Memorial Scholarship Fund was established by family and loved ones to honor the life of Tyler Kowatch, who passed away in 2018. Tyler lived a happy life with his family in Jim Thorpe, playing video games with his brother and participating in track and field.

Many who met and knew him would never have guessed that he endured several heart surgeries since birth. Tyler was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. In December 2017, he went into heart failure and learned that he would need a heart transplant in order to survive.

The “Tyler Strong” campaign was born when the community rallied to raise funds and offer support for Tyler and his family as they fought for his life in an extended stay at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Tyler passed away at the age of 18 due to complications from surgery on May 5, 2018. Tyler’s family established the Tyler Strong Memorial Scholarship to both honor his memory and give thanks to the community that supported them in their hour of need. This scholarship will be a one-year $500 scholarship awarded annually to a qualified graduating high school senior residing in the Jim Thorpe Area School District.

Further details, including criteria to apply for each of these funds, can be found online at https://cccfoundpa.org/existing-funds.

Carbon County Community Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that serves as an umbrella for many distinct charitable funds, offering them each professional expertise, time and cost savings, and greater impact achieved through working together.

“While giving to our community today is an important part of what we do by distributing grants and facilitating donations, our goal is to manage funds as endowments to provide stable income for the causes that matter most for generations to come,” Breiner said.

“People who care about our region can make a difference and leave a lasting legacy by establishing or contributing to a fund at the Carbon County Community Foundation.”