Winter_Spring_10

The RFC made its first awards on May 10th, 1991. Two grants, each for $402.50, enabled two children of a political prisoner to attend summer camp. Leaping ahead, during the last three years the RFC made awards totaling more than $1,100,000 to help hundreds of children whose parents have been targeted because they are Iraq war resisters, anti-racism activists, environmentalists, pacifists, union organizers, political prisoners, and activists in other progressive struggles.

In September 2009, the RFC began what we’ve dubbed our “20/20/20” campaign: 20 events in 20 cities in 20 months to celebrate our 20th anniversary! After eight events so far, we couldn’t be more pleased with the initial results.

These children, whose father is an anti-war and global human rights activist, have received RFC funding for a range of services over the years. Several grants were applied to tuition at an independent holistic school integrating arts and environmental education into academic disciplines. The school constructs its curriculum around three major themes: Building Community; Working for Social Justice; and Caring for the Earth.

This fall we awarded 73 grants totaling $178,314, bringing the 2009 figure to $354,220. Six are new awards and 67 are renewals.

Help the RFC mark its 20th anniversary by ensuring it will be there for future generations of targeted activists and their children. Pledge to get 2 friends to spend 2 minutes each to join the RFC’s mailing list.

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The RFC has rapidly expanded both the size and scope of our granting program. In 1991, we made our first two grants, which totaled less than $1,000. By 2002 we were awarding more than $200,000 a year, and from 2006 through 2008 grants totaled $400,000 annually. Although we were forced to scale back on granting in 2009, we have still awarded more in the last five years (2005 through 2009) than in our first 15!