Potawatomi Hotel & Casino on Tuesday randomly selected 20 nonprofit organizations to receive funds from its 2015 charity program known as “Heart of Canal Street.”
The program, previously referred to as “Miracle on Canal Street,” benefits local organizations that center their missions on serving youth.
The charity initiative, which started in 1994, has distributed more than $14.6 million among programs and services catering to children. Most of the initiative’s funds come from special rounds of bingo played on the casino floor. Potawatomi has hit the $1 million fundraising mark several times throughout the history of its charitable giving.
The 20 recipient organizations randomly selected for 2015 are: Best Buddies Wisconsin; Sunset Playhouse Inc.; Family Center of Washington County; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Dodge County & Watertown; Aurora Health Care on behalf of Aurora @ Home; Wildlife In Need Center; Urban Ecology Center; Know Thyself; ArtWorks for Milwaukee, Inc.; Arts @ Large; RAUCH Inc. Arts Organization; Mequon Nature Preserve, Inc.; Renaissance Theaterworks; Florentine Opera Company; Casa Guadalupe Education Center Inc.; Safe & Sound, Inc.; River Revitalization Foundation; The Threshold Inc.; The Nehemiah Project; and Riveredge Nature Center.
Organizations were chosen from a group of applications submitted to the hotel and casino earlier this year. In order to be considered for “Heart of Canal Street” funding, organizations must have 501(c)(3) status and primarily work with children younger than age 18. Organizations also must operate within Milwaukee, Racine, Washington, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Dodge, Jefferson, Kenosha, Sheboygan or Walworth counties.
The lineup of winning organizations, announced during a special ceremony held at the hotel and casino, joins a cohort of 10 signature charity organizations picked by program media partners and announced in August.
Signature charities are: Betty Brinn Children’s Museum, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Milwaukee, City Year Milwaukee, COPE Services, Homeless Assistance Leadership Organization, Hunger Task Force, Milwaukee Public Library Foundation, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Eastern Wisconsin, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center of the Arts, and The Women’s Center.
In addition to supporting signature charities and randomly selected charities, this year’s “Heart of Canal Street” program will allocate dollars to Potawatomi Hotel & Casino’s charity of choice, Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board.
Potawatomi plans to announce its 2015 “Heart of Canal Street” fundraising total during a finale event at the hotel and casino on Dec. 11.
