WILMINGTON — The New Hanover Community Endowment is awarding four grants totaling $4,812,055 intended to help residents find safety and support, get the care they need, and enjoy more places to learn, play and gather.
“The Endowment’s resources are here to benefit everyone in New Hanover County,” Sophie Dagenais, President and CEO of The Endowment, said in a press release. “Every resident benefits when families have support, people can get the care they need, and our community has inspiring places to learn, create and gather. We’re investing in a healthier, safer and more vibrant New Hanover County, today and for generations to come.”
New Hanover Outreach Clinic will receive $150,000 to provide free emergency dental care for uninsured, limited-income residents of New Hanover County. Funding supports dental services, equipment upgrades and staffing, helping volunteer dentists and oral surgeons treat urgent dental problems.
Reach Out and Read will receive $120,000 over three years to strengthen its program at participating pediatric clinics and expand to another location in New Hanover County. During routine checkups, providers give families free, age-appropriate books and show parents and caregivers how reading together supports their child’s development, building language skills, strengthening family bonds and connecting families with additional support.
The Cameron Art Museum will receive $1.5 million to support the construction of a new education pavilion and the first phase of CAM’s Art Park. These improvements will expand access to outdoor recreation, arts education, and family-friendly activities while strengthening the museum’s role as a cultural and community destination. An initial $750,000 payment will help unlock a $500,000 matching gift already secured by the museum. The remaining $750,000 will be released when CAM raises an equal amount, creating the potential for a combined investment of $2.75 million in the museum’s facilities and outdoor spaces.
Lastly, the New Hanover County Community Justice Center will receive $3.04 million to “sustain and expand its services” over three years.
The CJC began with a grant from $5-million grant from The Endowment in 2023 and launched to the public in 2024. The CJC helps survivors of family violence and sexual assault access legal assistance, health care, housing support, and other resources; it was also launched with the intention of targeting youth violence, particularly gangs, but this sector has not gotten off the ground.
The new Endowment grant will fund a coordinator to manage collaboration across agencies and a child advocate to support children who have experienced or witnessed violence, connecting services for survivors and families with youth violence prevention and intervention. It will also support services, cross-agency training and technical assistance as the center works toward national Family Justice Center affiliation.
The DA is still working on the youth component of the CJC. Though David based the nonprofit on the national Family Justice Center model, founded by the Alliance for Hope International, the CJC differs in its mission by also focusing on curbing youth violence.
The CJC has also struggled to demonstrate its successes and impact in hard numbers. Recently, The Endowment paid $60,000 — outside of its typical grant process and without public notice — for Alliance for Hope International to assess New Hanover County’s Community Justice Center. The Endowment told Port City Daily the assessment will provide “valuable support and technical assistance” to the CJC by offering “opportunities for course corrections and continuous improvement.”
When the CJC first launched, Ben David, former district attorney and director of the CJC until the end of 2026, said his goal was for the center to be government-funded by the end of The Endowment’s initial grant. The $5 million covered capital costs — rent and operating costs are now estimated at $400,000 annually — along with four assistant district attorneys and four legal assistants.
In its 2026-2027 budget, New Hanover County committed $300,000 in operating support for the CJC, plus $430,000 to cover the center’s eight district attorney’s office positions from Jan. 1 through June 30, 2027. The CJC also received $200,000 in the state budget and asked the City of Wilmington for $100,000, though this was not granted.
“This investment advances the family safety and stability focus of our Community Safety strategy by helping survivors and families access coordinated support that addresses the lasting effects of violence and trauma,” The Endowment’s Director of Social and Health Equity and Community Safety Mary Vail Ware said in a press release. “Linking that support with youth violence prevention strengthens the network for young people and their families and creates another pathway to prevent violence and intervene early.”
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