Lakeshore young professionals’ grant aims to ‘kickstart tangible change’

Members of the Holland/Zeeland Young Professionals (HYP) are working together to make a difference. One of their efforts is supporting five local nonprofits tackling community challenges. 

Each year, the Lakeshore-based nonprofit organization gives out an HYP Grant. Administered by the Holland/Zeeland Community Foundation, HYP awards grants to local nonprofits for use in short- or long-term projects that encourage leadership throughout the Holland/Zeeland community.
 
“The HYP Grant is designed to kickstart tangible change, growth, and leadership opportunities that can reach into even the smallest corners of our Lakeshore community,” says Johannes Boot, president of Holland/Zeeland Young Professionals. “As a group of young and emerging leaders, we feel uniquely positioned to build up other groups in our region, and we’re honored to donate to such powerhouse organizations that are dedicated to providing lasting change.”
 
Grant recipients

HYP Grant awards are made once annually, with individual funding amounts ranging from $500 to $750. The 2023 HYP Grant recipients include: 
 

• ODC Network: Outdoor Discovery Center Network’s overarching mission is to advance outdoor education and conservation in the Lakeshore region, helping students, families, individuals, and businesses understand, interact with, and preserve the natural world around them.
• Good Samaritan: Good Samaritan Ministries takes a holistic, wrap-around approach to poverty reduction, with an emphasis on ending homelessness, creating housing opportunities, and providing supportive services to increase housing stability for our vulnerable neighbors.
• The Flourish Society: Since its inception in 2019, The Flourish Society has built its own multigenerational mentoring program. They encourage and help raise girls and young women to know who they are and mentor them to become leaders of their generations.
• Children's Advocacy Center: The Children’s Advocacy Center provides prevention and multidisciplinary intervention in the investigation, assessment, and treatment of child sexual abuse in an environment that is child-sensitive, supportive, and safe.
• Red Horse Center for Collaborative Leadership: Inspired by the wisdom and healing power of horses, Red Horse Center for Collaborative Leadership facilitates a process of individual and collective transformation. Red Horse was created on a foundation of more than two decades of equine-assisted mental health, therapy, and organizational development to provide more opportunities for personal and professional development.

Planting seeds in the community

Since its beginning in 2009, HYP has granted more than $30,000 to local organizations, never straying from the organization's core values. 

The organization’s mission is to help members inspire their network; build their community; give back through donations, events, and volunteer opportunities; seek ways to improve the future; act with intentionality; and ensure every space is welcoming and equity-focused, according to Boot.
 
“These are the seeds that HYP plants in our community, and the networking organization is confident that each 2023 HYP Grant recipient will continue to help West Michigan bloom,” Boot says.