Montana Credit Union, in partnership with Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, has awarded $96,000 in grants to eight local nonprofits.

The FHLB Des Moines Member Impact Fund is a matching grant program introduced in 2023.

Grants from MCU and the FHLB Member Impact Fund include:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Montana: working capital to support youth community development mission, $10,000
• Boys and Girls Clubs of Cascade County: working capital to support new community development efforts with Fresh Rescue Community Kitchen and The Kids’ Garden, $12,000
• Family Promise of Great Falls: working capital to support emergency shelter for families, housing stabilization, shelter diversion, and homelessness prevention, $10,000
• Great Falls Community Food Bank: working capital to serve most vulnerable citizens in Cascade County, $10,000
• Great Falls Development Alliance: capacity building and training, $24,000
• NeighborWorks Great Falls: working capital to support community development and outreach efforts, $10,000
• Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art: working capital to address needs of building and specialty programming, $10,000
• United Way of Cascade County: working capital to support community development initiatives, $10,000

“Montana Credit Union has been a proud supporter of these selected organizations for several years,” Becky Timmons, MCU vice president of marketing, said in a release. “Together, they have been dedicated to affordable housing and community development initiatives, and made immeasurable progress in advocating for the vulnerable in our community. From addressing housing concerns to youth and family development, tackling hunger, and promoting healing through the arts, these eight organizations all play a critical role in lifting our community up. These grant dollars, in addition to Montana Credit Union’s donations, will make a measurable impact to the good work they do.”

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FHLB Des Moines provides funding solutions and liquidity to more than 1,200 members to support mortgage lending, economic development and affordable housing in the communities they serve.

The Member Impact Fund provides $3 for every $1 of an eligible FHLB Des Moines member’s grant donation to strengthen the ability of not-for-profits or government entities to serve the affordable housing or community development needs of their communities, according to a release.

The Member Impact Fund awards are given in partnership with member financial institutions to communities in their districts.

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“This additional funding will help support our programming in The Kids Garden, as well as our new local effort with the Fresh Rescue community kitchen, which both impact our healthy lifestyles programming for our Club kids. We are thankful for this additional boost which will help make these efforts sustainable,” Sonya Smith, director of the local Boys and Girls Club, said in a release, citing difficulties in hiring and training staff, while also maintaining meaningful programming for the hundreds of Cascade County youth they serve each week.

The Member Impact Fund matching program will provide nearly $20 million to eligible organizations in target areas of FHLB Des Moines’ district, which includes Hawaii, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Guam, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Member institutions in these locations submitted applications in February and March 2024; funds were distributed directly to the member institution, which then provide the funding alongside a matching grant from FHLB Des Moines for the partner/recipient organization.

In 2024 FHLB Des Moines increased the Member Impact Fund by $10 million, according to the company.

Recipient organizations were selected based on the needs for grant funding to support capacity-building or working capital necessary to strengthen their ability to serve affordable housing or community development needs, including training, predevelopment assistance, management information systems or software, strategic planning, market study or community needs assessment, and working capital, according to a release.