NC coastal group gets grant to engage citizens

OCEAN, N.C. — A North Carolina coastal group has won a foundation grant to help generate citizen interest in preserving water quality and sealife habitat.

The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation awarded a $330,000, three-year grant to the North Carolina Coastal Federation, which is headquartered in Carteret County.

Foundation executive director Leslie Winner said the group’s donations to the coastal group over the years have created tangible results along the coast.

The coastal federation is a nonprofit organization that focuses solely on protecting and restoring the state’s coast. The Reynolds foundation is funded with income from trusts established by the Reynolds tobacco family and has given more than $442 million over
the decades since it was established in 1936.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)