September 7, 2026 – The We Are One Community Fund awarded $18,000 in grants to 22 local charities during its annual Labor Day Picnic Monday at Fairview Park in Decatur.
The largest grant was $2,000 for Meals on Wheels. Good Samaritan Inn, Youth Advocate/Webster Cantrell Hall, Shemilah’s Outreach Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters each received $1,500.
Boys & Girls Club, CASA and St. Mary’s Hospice each received $1,000.
An additional $7,000 in grants was designated for 14 organizations, with each receiving $500. Those organizations are Child First Center, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Decatur Family YMCA, Old Kings Orchard Community Center, John C. Ellis Lodge Number 17, Humane Society of Decatur and Macon County, Salvation Army, Special Olympics, DOVE, Decatur Cancer Care Specialists Charitable Fund, Community Development Shockwave Youth Group, Midwest Hawks of Illinois and New Life Church of God Back to School Project.
The We Are One Community Fund was established in 2011 by the Mid-Illinois Labor Council and Decatur Building and Construction Trades Council to promote collective giving and philanthropy among working families. The fund is housed at the Heart of Illinois Community Foundation.
The organization said the grant distribution also marked the beginning of a new year of fundraising for the fund, with local unions encouraged to conduct campaigns and promote payroll deductions. Donations collected during 2026 will be distributed to local organizations on Labor Day 2027.
