Growing Our Communities Grant

2024-2025 AgSouth Growing Our Communities Grant Winners

Georgia

City of Douglas Fire Department (Douglas, Georgia): To purchase grain bin rescue equipment to enhance the capabilities of responding to emergencies effectively. 

Coweta County Extension/4H (Newnan, Georgia): To increase public awareness of our local Coweta County Farmers Market through marketing campaigns designed to showcase the availability of locally produced agricultural products, including fresh produce, meats, eggs, honey, flowers and perennials, all offered by local producers within the market.

Evans County Community Center, Inc. (Claxton, Georgia): To provide a "Community Garden" to grow fresh produce for senior citizens and underserved populations in our community. 

Global Growers Network Inc. (Conyers, Georgia): To establish a learning garden and accompanying curriculum activities at the Rockdale County Co-Farm. 

Hunger Has No Color (Atlanta, Georgia): To enhance farm sustainability and biodiversity by integrating rainwater collection for field or high tunnel crop irrigation while supporting native birdlife for insect control, especially mosquitoes. 

Kennedy Pond Conservancy Inc. (Statesboro, Georgia): To provide hands-on learning for students that focus on water conservation, biodiversity, and sustainable agriculture; and offer training sessions for teachers to equip them with the knowledge and tools to incorporate environmental education into their teaching.

Main Street Millen (Millen, Georgia): To enhance the Millen Produce Market's infrastructure by purchasing tents, tables, and fans. 

Midway Elementary School (Blackshear, Georgia): To expand our chicken coop by adding a wide variety of different breeds of chickens and expand the garden by adding a greenhouse. 

Oconee Farmers Market (Watkinsville, Georgia): To purchase a small 8 or 10 ft. enclosed trailer to store and transport our market's belongings. 

Screven County 4-H (Sylvania, Georgia): To provide youth ages 4th-12th grade with an interest in horses to participate in a series of activities designed to improve citizenship, sportsmanship, horsemanship, character discipline, and responsibility. 

Sharon Elementary School PTO (Loganville, Georgia): To enhance the agricultural and agribusiness learning of the K-5 students by renovating the current Jag Ag Lab. 

Statesboro Farmers Market (Statesboro, Georgia): To expand the Statesboro Farmers Market’s children's area and provide engaging activities that showcase how essential farms are to food distribution, food accessibility, and community health, demonstrate engineering’s ever growing role in agriculture, promote ecological awareness, and the dozens of potential future careers that are all rooted in local Georgia agriculture.

Tattnall County Young Farmers (Reidsville, Georgia): To purchase a new livestock tote box to transport show goats and swine for local 4H and FFA students upon purchase and show days. 
 

North Carolina

Alamance Community College (Graham, North Carolina): To enable the poultry processing equipment to become mobile.  This will allow us to do demonstrations at high school agriculture programs, cooperative extension workshops, and provide equipment for rent for local farms.

Alleghany High School (Sparta, North Carolina): To acquire a stock trailer to ensure the safe and efficient transport of livestock.

Appalachian State University (Boone North Carolina): To enhance the Appalachian Heritage Garden, which is an integral part of the campus Sustainable Development Civic Garden.  The Heritage Garden preserves biodiversity, including native American and Southern Appalachian culture and heirloom seeds.  The garden is a community garden for education and building local food systems.

Caswell County Local Food Council (Yanceyville, North Carolina): To assist farmers in selling offerings and improve access to healthy food in the Caswell food dessert.

Charlotte Mecklenburg Food Policy Council (Cornelius, North Carolina): To implement a customer loyalty program to incentivize and reward shoppers who visit the North Meck Community Farmers Market.  

Cleveland County Emergency Medical Services (Shelby, North Carolina): To purchase a grain bin rescue to enhance its capacity to respond to emergencies involving entrapment in agricultural settings. 

Dig In! Yancey Community Garden (Burnsville, North Carolina): To increase production at our two acre community farm by enclosing it with deer fencing.

East Henderson FFA (Flat Rock, North Carolina): To purchase livestock panels for student instructions and youth livestock  projects. 

Farm School on Wheels (Hamptonville, North Carolina): To celebrate and educate Veteran farmers in Southeastern North Carolina. 

Hayesville High School FFA (Hayesville, North Carolina): To create a heavy-use area for livestock.  This addition would allow students hands on opportunities in animal science as well as a public venue to partner with such groups as NC Extension & NRCS/SWCD to provide educational opportunities to the farming public.

Haywood's Historic Farmers Market (Waynesville, North Carolina): To purchase unsold fruits and vegetables from farmers and donate to Haywood Gleaners, an organization dedicated to food security, that delivers the produce to underserved communities. T

Howards Creek Fire Department (Lincolnton, North Carolina): To purchase a grain bin rescue to enhance its capacity to respond to emergencies involving entrapment in agricultural settings. 

Neighbors in Ministry, Inc. (Brevard, North Carolina): To incorporate STEM into gardening projects and lessons, designed to provide scholars with opportunities to learn about; soil science and composting, plant growth and life cycles, weather impacts and climate, effects of fertilizers and water, hydroponics, raised beds, trellis and vertical growing structures, weed competition, harmful and beneficial insects, a deeper insight into food and nutrition, and a greater understanding of the ag industry in general and the many careers associated with it.

Richmond County Beekeeping Association (Ellerbe, North Carolina): To build a demonstration cage, with trailer, for classes and presentations. 

Spirit Horse Ranch Rescue and Education Inc (Asheboro, North Carolina): To purchase an Equicizer (a life size mechanical horse) for therapeutic riding for children and adults in the event of bad weather.

Sugar Hill Montford Cove Fire Department (Marion, North Carolina): To upgrade our rope rescue equipment in order to be more prepared for farm/agriculture/wilderness rescues.

Vashti Fire-Rescue, Inc. (Taylorsville, North Carolina): To purchase the necessary equipment and rigging for a grain bin rescue. 

South Carolina

Agricultural Museum of South Carolina (Pendleton, South Carolina): To fund the "Cultivating Legacies: African American Agriculture in South Carolina" exhibit that will highlight the valuable and prominent role that Black farmers and farming have had on our entire state.

Axis 1 Center of Barnwell dba Barnwell Farmers Market (Barnwell, South Carolina): To purchase a mobile cooking unit and supplies for educational cooking demonstrations at the market. 

Caw Caw Vfd (St Matthews, South Carolina): To purchase a mobile cooking unit and supplies for educational cooking demonstrations at the market. 

Dorchester County Fire Rescue (St George, South Carolina): To purchase a grain bin rescue to enhance its capacity to respond to emergencies involving entrapment in agricultural settings. 

Equine Rescue of Aiken (Aiken, South Carolina): To improve pasture health of 65 acres by decreasing soil erosion, improving vegetative composition and density, and reducing agricultural runoff.

Landrum Farmers Market (Landrum, South Carolina): To support the Landrum Farmers Market, Music at the Saturday Market from 8:00am - Noon during the Market season.

Lowcountry Street Grocery (Charleston, South Carolina): To purchase two merchandising coolers for the mobile farmers market (a retrofitted 1987 Ford school bus) thank will display local produce, dairy, beverages, cheeses for customers to shop from.

Newberry Middle School (Newberry, South Carolina): To enhance its student's learning experience by offering hands-on agriculture projects and experiments including growing crops in raised beds and raising chickens in a school chicken coop for egg production. In addition, students will conduct experiments and exploration activities using the school garden and poultry production experience in line with state science standards.

Operation Patriots FOB (Ridgeland, South Carolina): To create of a memorial garden for reflection and remembrance of Veterans at our facility in Ridgeland SC.  

Orangeburg County Fair Association (Orangeburg, South Carolina): To install fans in the hog and cattle barns at the fairgrounds in order to improve the air quality and flow in the barns during livestock shows as well as enhance the overall experience for participants and spectators.

RobinHood Group (Union, South Carolina): To install water taps and spigots at schools and community gardens in several of Union County food desert populated areas including, Santuc, Library, Town of Jonesville, AMIkids White Pines campus, Achievement Academy/Adult Education campus and Cross Keys.

The FARM Center (Oconee - Seneca, South Carolina): To provide hands-on learning opportunities in sustainable farming practices, enabling participants to grow, harvest, and market their produce.

Westminster Catawba Christian School (Rock Hill, South Carolina):  To build a greenhouse, which will serve as a vital resource for the newly introduced horticulture class for 9th-12th graders and provide students with hands-on learning opportunities in plant cultivation, environmental science, and sustainable practices. 

Keeping the Future of Agriculture Bright 

Each year, AgSouth Farm Credit supports non-profit organizations and farmers markets with grants of up to $5,000 to help in their endeavors and to further the future of agriculture in our region of Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Grant Mission & Objectives

The AgSouth Growing Our Communities Grant's mission is to build strong partnerships and alliances, leveraging the resources within our grant program to preserve and promote the farmer, the family, and our communities. The grant has three main objectives:

• Invest in the future of agriculture.
• Enhance and impact the quality of life in the AgSouth territory.
• Be recognized as a leading corporate citizen in the AgSouth territory.

Applications

The AgSouth Growing Our Communities Grant operates on an application-based grant system. Grants will be awarded for up to $5,000 per organization per year. To be considered for funding, organizations' values and purpose must align with the grant program's mission. Applications must be submitted online. You will be asked to attach a copy of your organization's W9 to the application prior to submission. Incomplete applications cannot be accepted. Please make sure you complete all fields prior to submission.

Project Guidance
As part of the application, organizations must submit a project the grant will help fund. Examples of previously funded projects include but are not limited to:

•    Providing farmers market programming for children
•    Purchasing fans for a livestock arena to help cool the animals
•    Developing a comprehensive chick hatching program to give tools and resources to those wanting to raise backyard flocks 
•    Opening a demonstration farm in conjunction with a local school district
•    Purchasing grain bin rescue equipment for fire and rescue teams
•    Funding a bee-keeping education program for vulnerable youths
•    Purchasing an irrigation system at a local Farmers Market
•    Expanding a local church garden space and adding fencing
•    Hosting an annual agricultural event
•    Purchasing a cargo trailer to transport livestock equipment
•    Building a school greenhouse

Eligibility Considerations

Grants will be considered for programs only in the 147 counties and geographic areas where AgSouth Farm Credit conducts business. Grants will only be awarded to non-profit organizations and farmers markets and will not be awarded to individuals or private farms.

Funding Cycle

Grant applications will be accepted from April 1 to June 30th, 2024. Proposals will be reviewed and grants will be awarded in Nov-Dec of 2024. Funds awarded maybe utilized by recipients during the 2025 calendar year.

Application Deadline

The 2025 Grant Application period is now closed. Applications for 2026 will open April 1, 2026. 

Questions

Please contact 
Ansley Turnblad, Marketing Specialist, at Ansley.Turnblad@AgSouthFC.com or 
call 844.AGSOUTH. 
Heather Brannen, PR Marketing Manger, at Heather.Brannen@AgSouthFC.com,