The revitalized building and the nonprofit organization that promotes programs here would not have been possible without broad and deep community support and significant contributions from key individuals and organizations.
The capital campaign was launched in 2005 – the same year that the building was named to the National Register of Historic Places – was an effort of the Kent County Arts Council in cooperation with leaders of the African American Community, the Town of Chestertown, Kent County Department of Tourism and Economic Development and many others near and far.
Private donors contributed more than $125,000 to this initiative. These private individual gifts, along with the grants listed below, were used to purchase the building, renovate it with historical sensitivity and accuracy and to launch the nonprofit corporation, G.A.R. Post #25, Inc. to manage it in the future.
The Board of Directors and Members of G.A.R. Post 25, Inc. express special appreciation to:
- Community Legacy Grants, Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development: $325,000
- African American Heritage Preservation: $100,000
- Stories of the Chesapeake, Maryland Historical Trust’s Maryland Heritage Areas Authority: $45,300
- Bartus Trew Providence Preservation Fund, National Trust for Historic Preservation: $22,500
- The John Ben Snow Memorial Trust: $15,000
- Preservation Maryland: $2,500