By Richard L. Gaw
Staff Writer

Since its inception in 2022, the Square Roots Community Initiative (SRCI) – a non-profit arm of Square Roots Collective -- has awarded more than $500,000 in grants to support community groups in the area, including a $96,000 grant to drive more than $2 million in state grant funding for the recently completed Kennett Borough police station.

As 2025 gets underway, that generosity is showing no signs of slowing down.

SRCI recently announced that it awarded more than $282,000 in grants to support the following area entities:

• The Kennett Trails Alliance received $110,000 grant as part of larger funding commitment from multiple entities for the Kennett Greenway, a 14-mile bike and pedestrian trail
• Anson B. Nixon Park received a $60,000 gift toward a grants consultant who will assist the Kennett Area Park Authority with securing funding for planned capital improvements
• Kennett Township received a $25,000 grant to support the completion of a trail along South Street in the Kennett Square Borough that will connect the borough to Pennock Park and the Parrish Trail
• Voices Underground received a $12,500 grant for Juneteenth celebration programming as well as expanding the organization’s capacity to highlight the role of the Underground Railroad in Kennett Square 
• The Lincoln University Foundation was the recipient of a $10,000 grant to support an initiative that connects Lincoln University students with local professionals
• Kennett Collaborative received a $7,800 grant to further develop the annual Holiday Village Market and
• Good Samaritan Services was the recipient of a $5,000 grant to support the agency’s services and facilities at their Birch Street facility in Kennett Square.

These grants are in addition to the $31,000 awarded in 2024 to Family Promise of Southern Chester County, Civic Trust and Casa Guanajuato.

“SRCI exists to benefit the greater Kennett community,” said Stephanie Almanza, president of the SRCI Board of Directors. “Our model has been to use the profits generated from our for-profit businesses like The Creamery and the Artelo [Hotel] and reinvest 100 percent of those profits to support the great work of these non-profit organizations. Central to Square Roots Collective’s philosophy is the role of collaboration and partnership. We’re privileged to work side-by-side with these amazing organizations to help this community thrive for all.”

To learn more about the Square Roots Community Initiative, visit www.ksqroots.com/srci