Contact:
Kathryn Yarzebinski, President & CEO
(434) 845-6500
(Lynchburg, VA – March 10, 2025) - The Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation Youth Philanthropy Program Announces 2026 Grant Recipients
(Lynchburg, VA - March 10, 2025) - The 20th Youth Philanthropy Council of the Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation will award their annual nonprofit grants on Wednesday, March 25 from 4:15-5:30PM at Central Virginia Community College in the Merritt Hall Auditorium.
The recipient of the $10,000 Wells Fargo Youth Philanthropy Award is Food for Kids and the $5,000 Stuart J. Turille Youth Philanthropy Award is Campbell County Educational Foundation.
Food for Kids will use the $10,000 grant to fuel its Weekend Pack a Sack Program. "We began providing weekend bags of food for elementary students at one Bedford County school back in 2010. Since then, we have grown to serve over 700 children in seven elementary schools. In most instances, 94-98% of the students in these schools are identified as food insecure, not knowing where their next meal will come from. This grant will allow us to continue to provide meals and snacks for these children throughout the school year,” said Susan Tinsley, Board President of Food for Kids.
The Campbell County Educational Foundation will utilize the $5,000 grant to support a Future Center for William Campbell Combined School that will be staffed by a college and career coach. The Future Center will offer a way to connect with students to help them discover their passions and dreams, create a plan to achieve those dreams and help them carry out that plan. The funding will cover college and work visits and costs such as bus transportation, fees and supplies as well as fund events such as FASFA, college and resume building workshops. Furnishing and supplies for the room will also be supported with this funding.
“This generous gift will truly impact the students at William Campbell Combined School providing critical resources for these students to achieve their goals,” said Campbell County Educational Foundation Board President, Rose Epperson.
The 2026 Youth Philanthropy Council (“YPC”) consists of 24 outstanding seniors from 11 high schools in the region the GLCF serves: the City of Lynchburg and the counties of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, and Campbell. The primary role of YPC members is to award $15,000 in grants to deserving local nonprofit organizations. This opportunity allows students to better understand how philanthropy impacts our community. Students are advised by local community leaders who guide them through the process of awarding grants.
Kathryn Crowder Yarzebinski, President & CEO of the GLCF said, “Since its inception in 2003, our Youth Philanthropy program has been a rewarding experience for all those involved. The Youth Philanthropy Council teaches high school seniors about how local nonprofits make their community better. As students go through the grantmaking process, they learn a lot of life lessons. This includes how to work through the steps of an eight-month process, how to critically read and evaluate requests for funding, and how to present their own independent findings and research to others. Most importantly, they are learning to sit around a table with people who may have very different perspectives and opinions, and respectfully communicate in order to come to a consensus.”
The goal of the Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation’s Youth Philanthropy Program is to instill in our youth the awareness of our community needs and the desire to be active in our community by means of volunteering and philanthropy.
The program was established as the centerpiece of the 30th anniversary celebration of the Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation in 2002.
Since 2003, Wells Fargo Investment Management has graciously provided the funding for the annual $10,000 Youth Philanthropy Award. The Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation provides funding from the Stuart J. Turille Fund for an additional $5,000 youth philanthropy award.
The YPC held its kickoff meeting in September 2024 at Central Virginia Community College, and met periodically throughout the school year. The students reviewed grant applications, rated the applications, performed site visits of the top ten applicants, and prepared presentations on these applications.
From this process, a final vote was taken to determine which agencies will receive the $10,000 grant and the $5,000 grant. An awards presentation and reception with students, families and award recipients will be held on March 25 at 4:30pm at CVCC Merritt Hall Auditorium. This is the culmination of all of the YPC’s hard work, and is a celebration of youth, philanthropy, and the winning nonprofit organizations.
The YPC Advisory Committee includes: Dr. Verna Sellers, YPC Advisory Committee Chair & GLCF Board of Directors; Olyvia Brown-Coles, Director of Homeless Systems Coordination at Miriam’s House; Dr. Charles Gibson, Chief Engagement and Belonging Officer and Director of the Intercultural Center at Randolph College; Jodi Gillette, Executive Director of Institutional Advancement and the Educational Foundation at Central Virginia Community College; Laura Hubbard, Testing & Remediation Coordinator at Liberty High School; Megan Huffman, Director of Community Outreach at the Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation; Amanda Stanley, Founder & CEO of The Artisan Leader & GLCF Board of Directors; Ashley Steinweg, Director of Development at Park View Community Mission; Luke Towles, Senior Vice President at Pinnacle Financial Partners; Chad Waterworth, Financial Advisor at Vaden Waterworth Poats of Raymond James & GLCF Board of Directors; and Kathryn Crowder Yarzebinski, President & CEO of the Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation.
YPC Student Participants by City/County:
Lynchburg City
Destiny Jackson, EC Glass High School
Henry Pratt, EC Glass High School
Elijah Callahan, Heritage High School
Josiah Martin, Heritage High School
Enoch Tan, New Covenant Schools
Sarah McCurley, New Covenant Schools
Eloise Koscielny, Virginia Episcopal School
Nolyn Forehand, Virginia Episcopal School
Rohan Prabhu, Virginia Episcopal School
Appomattox County
Tristan Wall, Appomattox County High School
Xiamond Baker, Appomattox County High School
Bedford County
Aarish Patel, Jefferson Forest High School
Knox Savill, Jefferson Forest High School
Sam Shaboyo, Jefferson Forest High School
Ben Ziegler, Jefferson Forest High School
Billy Coughlan, Liberty High School
Grace Stevens, Liberty High School
Archit Arora, Staunton River High School
Joshua Manning, Staunton River High School
Campbell County
Trinity Charlton, Altavista Combined School
Lila Ettare, Brookville High School
Peyton Stanbery, Brookville High School
Jillian Jurkow, Rustburg High School
Justin Thomas, Rustburg High School
The Greater Lynchburg Community Foundation was established in 1972 to promote local philanthropy. The mission of the GLCF is to enhance the quality of life for our neighbors in the City of Lynchburg and the counties of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford and Campbell by the establishment of permanent endowments with income distributed annually to charitable organizations within the community.
Since 1972, the GLCF has granted over $37 million to a wide variety of local nonprofit organizations including human services, animal welfare, arts, education, and historical preservation organizations. In 2025 alone, the GLCF awarded over $2.6 million to 253 charitable organizations.
