Hopa Mountain of Bozeman, Montana Announces ‘Learn and Serve America’ Grants to Six Communities in Montana; Encourages Organizations to Apply for Upcoming Grant Awards

The Governor’s Office of Community Service http://www.serve.mt.gov announced today that Hopa Mountain http://www.hopamountain.org , a non-profit organization in Bozeman, has awarded Learn and Serve America grants to six Youth Leaders in Service projects in Montana and one in Wyoming, through a partnership with the Corporation for National and Community Service http://www.nationalservice.gov . The grant awards range from $8,000 dollars to $15,000 dollars.

"Through Youth Leaders in Service, rural and tribal youth have the opportunity to design and implement innovative service projects in cooperation with local community partners," said Bonnie Sachatello-Sawyer, Executive Director of Hopa Mountain.

The Learn and Serve America awardees include:

· Children’s Museum of Bozeman

· Anaconda Family Resource Center

· Boulder Elementary School

· Eureka School District

· Boys and Girls Club of the Northern Cheyenne Nation

· Heart Butte High School

· Facing History Community Night Class at Wyoming Indian High School

Each awardee is implementing youth-led service-learning projects in their home communities in 2010.

Hopa Mountain’s mission is to invest in rural and tribal citizen leaders, adults and youth, who are working to improve education, ecological health and economic development.

"Our youth are our future," said Jan Lombardi, Director of the Governor’s Office of Community Service. "Hopa Mountain’s programs give youth a chance to set their sights on a hometown problem and learn how they can personally invest in creating a brighter vision for the future."

Hopa Mountain is offering free service-learning webinars throughout April and May for those individuals and organizations interested in implementing youth-led service-learning projects in their communities or applying for a Youth Leaders in Service grant in June.

For more information about upcoming service-learning webinars or to participate, please contact Marissa Spang, Youth Leaders in Service Program Coordinator at (406) 586-2455 or visit http://www.hopamountain.org.

Learn and Serve America helps over one million students every year make meaningful contributions in their communities while building their academic and civic skills and establishing a lifelong commitment to service. For more information please go to http://www.learnandserve.gov/.

The Corporation for National and Community Service engages more than four million Americans in service each year through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America. For more information please go to http://www.nationalservice.gov/.

The Governor’s Office of Community Service http://www.serve.mt.gov was created in 1993 to expand service opportunities for all Montanans.