The Carpenter Foundation grants are given twice each year to a maximum of 10 community groups each time. This summer, the foundation donated a total of $210,000.
“When you look at the town of Temple, Texas - the things that are here, like culture and arts - is proof itself that these grants are important to the community,” said Tommy Stinson, division manager of E.R. Carpenter L.P.
The Foundation was created in 1973 after the death of E. Rhodes Carpenter, founder of the company.
“I think it’s an honor and a privilege to participate in this and contribute to the community,” Stinson said.
The Temple Civic Theater has received support from the Carpenter Foundation for more than 20 years. The $40,000 the theater received will fund operational costs, including water, electricity, costumes, sets and staff salaries.
“We provide a place for thousands of volunteers and patrons to participate in the arts,” said Tim Campbell, managing and artistic director of the theater. “We are able to do what we do monthly largely because of their support.”
Campbell says the theater receives funds from other organizations, but a large part of its funding comes from the Carpenter Foundation.
“We would be hard-pressed for funding had it not been for the Carpenter Foundation every year,” he said.
The Railroad and Heritage Museum of Temple received $14,000 and will use the grant to expand existing exhibits and introduce new ones.
“This is such a wonderful commitment on their part,” said Railroad and Heritage Museum executive director Judith Covington. “We are really excited and very grateful as well.”
The grant will be used to make exhibits geared more specifically toward fifth- and sixth-grade groups that visit the museum, which is a magnet for the Killeen and Temple school districts, she said.
Christian Farms-Treehouse is a residential drug and alcohol treatment center and a third-year recipient of a Carpenter grant.
“Sometimes people can’t afford to come,” said Executive Director Beverly Miller.
The center houses patients from 30 to 90 days and provides curriculum and treatment for residents.
Miller says the organization will use its $65,000 grant to better meet the needs of its patients, of which they house roughly 160 annually.
E.R. Carpenter, L.P. manufactures urethane foams for furniture and bedding., and four out of 12 divisions of the company’s divisions are allowed to participate in the grant program
Submissions for the spring grant are due in March, and fall grant submissions are due in July of the same year.
