Zonta Club of Petoskey awarded grants to nine area organizations for their work in the community to empower women and girls. During the 2024-2025 round of applications, 14 organizations submitted an RFP, requesting a total of $55,660. Zonta Club of Petoskey awarded grants supporting the following programs:
Camp Daggett is receiving $1,740 to fund printing and materials for a new STEAM curriculum developed in partnership with TOPOnexus, including guidebooks, maps, and tools for hands-on learning. This initiative will enhance programming at the Adventure Center and benefit both overnight and day campers – particularly girls – by encouraging engagement in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math.
Child & Family Services is receiving $1,000 to help create The Peaceful Playground – a safe, outdoor play space at their Harbor Springs location for families affected by domestic violence, abuse, and/or neglect. This space will support healing and connection during supervised visits and child exchanges, offering children and parents the mental health and relationship-building benefits of time spent in nature and play.
Crooked Tree Arts Center is receiving $1,500 to support the School of Ballet’s Choreographic Mentorship Residency, which provides young women and girls with a unique opportunity to explore creative expression and career possibilities in dance. The funding will bring professional mentors to guide students in choreography, helping them build confidence, skills, and a deeper connection to the arts. 40% of CTAC’s ballet students receive financial assistance.
First Tee Northern Michigan is receiving $1,500 to support their rapidly growing Girls Golf program, which uses golf as a platform to teach life skills and empower young girls through mentorship and coaching by an all-female staff. The funds will help maintain a low student-to-coach ratio, provide lodging for a female intern, and support junior coaches—many of whom are program alumni—as they mentor the next generation of participants. 39% are female participants.
The Health Department of Northwest Michigan is receiving $260 to purchase two sensory wall panels for exam rooms in their Harbor Springs clinic. These panels provide sensory stimulation and a healthy distraction for young children during procedures like vaccinations, helping reduce stress.
The Manna Food Project is receiving $1,000 to sponsor women to participate in cooking classes in 2025 that focus on nutrition, food safety, and healthy meal preparation. These classes aim to empower women facing food insecurity by providing the knowledge, skills, and ingredients needed to make nutritious meals, supporting both immediate needs and long-term wellness.
Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity is receiving $2,000 to help tackle northern Michigan’s housing crisis by building additional homes in the Meadowlands project. In the last two years, 29 households have purchased or received critical home care, and 50% of those households are women led. The funds will help provide affordable, energy-efficient homes for women and children, offering them stability and the opportunity for self-sufficiency, while contributing to the local workforce and economy.
The Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan is receiving $3,500 to support the installation of essential technology in their newly expanded Petoskey facility, which will house critical services for women, children, and families. This funding will help ensure secure, efficient operations across programs such as domestic abuse and sexual assault support, trauma-informed therapy, and preschool education, all within a modern, accessible, and inclusive space.
North Central Michigan College is receiving $5,000 a year for two years from Zonta’s Women and Children’s Fund at the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Community Foundation, to support its Career and Technical Education Enhancement Project (CATEE), which is expanding and modernizing campus facilities to better prepare students—especially women—for high-demand careers in healthcare, STEM, and manufacturing. This investment will help provide state-of-the-art learning environments that empower women to gain skills, achieve economic independence, and become leaders in their fields and communities.
In addition to these grants, Zonta of Petoskey gives each year a $2,500 grant to the Women’s Resource Center Northern Michigan to support a scholarship for women at North Central Michigan College, plus operating support for the WRC Northern Michigan, and support to remodel a room at the Safe House. The club also provides money toward the making and donation of mastectomy pillows for McLaren Northern Michigan Hospital, and a $1,000 scholarship yearly for the Young Women in Leadership program.
Grant recipients left to right: Front row: Andrea Koch, Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan; Carrie Klingelsmith, The Manna Food Project; Mary Ling, Camp Daggett; Katelyn Nellis, Health Department of Northwest Michigan; Finley Van Patten, Crooked Tree Arts Center. Back row: Andi Tolzdorf, First Tee Northern Michigan; Sarah Ulrich, Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity; Laurie McMurray, Camp Daggett; Tracy Martin, Child and Family Services; Angela Morris, Crooked Tree Arts Center; Heather Raue, Crooked Tree Arts Center.Not pictured: Miranda Fisher/NCMC Foundation.