From left, Randy Smith, Bulldogs Booster Club President Lorrie Stilley, Martinsburg High School football coach Dave Walker and Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation President Darlene Truman joined four members of the football team recently for the presentation of a $10,000 check to help replace the electronics on the aging scoreboard at Cobourn Field.
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Former Berkeley County Sheriff Randy Smith has continued to support the community after hitting the Powerball jackpot in late 2010.
Shortly after winning, Smith created the W. Randy Smith Family Fund with a contribution of nearly $6 million to the Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation. More than $3 million in grants have been awarded to Berkeley County schools, nonprofit organizations and government agencies from the fund. Smith has been busy throughout the year, recommending grants to support many charitable causes in Berkeley County.
The long list of projects supported by the W. Randy Smith Family Fund this year includes three grants to Martinsburg High School. The first was to design, construct and install the brick and electronic sign on Queen Street in front of the school. The second grant paid for two large bulldog statues that are prominently displayed at the school, and a third grant helped fund needed repairs to the scoreboard at the Bulldogs’ football stadium.
Smith continues to recommend grants to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations in Berkeley County, including a $5,000 grant to provide uniforms for the Martinsburg Police & Fire Explorers Post 27. A joint operation of the city’s police and fire departments, this program will give older teens the opportunity to experience what it takes to be police officer or firefighter and helps them determine if they’d like to pursue a career in public service.
Another grant was approved to construct a set of bleachers at the Martin Luther King Jr. Park basketball court. Most recently, a $4,400 grant was awarded to Eagle GridIron Gang Supporters, the Hedgesville High football boosters, for an EndZone Camera system.
The Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation is a local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that directs tax-exempt gifts from donors to endowed funds to support favorite charitable causes in the region. Founded in 1995, EWVCF provides financial stewardship for $19 million in endowments for 200 component funds, and awards more than $600,000 in grants and scholarships annually.
For more information, visit www.ewvcf.org or call 304-264-0353.