Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan creates fund to support Lake Huron’s health

What’s happening: The Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan has created a fund to support the health of Lake Huron, and in turn, “the health of our communities,” the organization announced. The permanently endowed Lake Huron Fund will provide grants to nonprofit organizations with initiatives that aim to protect, preserve, and enhance Lake Huron’s health through CFNEM and its affiliate foundation service areas.

About the fund: CFNEM seeded the fund with $25,000. Donations from individuals and businesses will help the foundation to support projects like rain gardens, storm runoff management, wildlife management, and invasive species removal across the Lake Huron shoreline and watershed that support the lake’s vitality. The fund will specifically support projects in Alcona, Alpena, Cheboygan, Crawford, Iosco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, and Presque Isle counties – all of which fall within the Lake Huron watershed.

The backstory: CFNEM has long been involved in projects supporting the health of Lake Huron. CFNEM has been a part of the Lake Huron Forever initiative since it launched in 2019, having been part of the planning, promotion, and granting, and now through this endowed fund. The Lake Huron Forever initiative was developed in 2019 by shoreline community foundations and conservation partners from the United States and Canada.

What they’re saying: “Lake Huron is so much more than just a body of water. It provides drinking water for more than 3 million people, supports fisheries and water-based recreation, and is a key component of our regional economy,” says Patrick Heraghty, who is CFNEM executive director. “The Lake Huron Fund was created so the Foundation and our community can build a permanent resource to ensure that we can preserve, protect, and enhance Lake Huron and its watershed, and do our part in northeast Michigan to sustain this precious natural resource.”

To donate: Donations to the new Lake Huron Fund can be made at cfnem.org.