The Chicago Lighthouse Lands 2023 Amazon Web Services IMAGINE Grant for Nonprofit

Dec 5th, 2023

The Lighthouse will work with Amazon’s cloud computing arm to modernize its technology and build an end-to-end supply chain platform.

CHICAGO (Dec. 5, 2023) – The Chicago Lighthouse has been selected as a winner of the 2023 Amazon Web Services (AWS) IMAGINE Grant, a public grant opportunity open to registered 501(c) nonprofit organizations in the United States and the United Kingdom who are using technology to support the world’s most pressing challenges.

The Chicago Lighthouse will use the grant to update its technology and implement an end-to-end supply chain platform for its Lighthouse Industries subsidiary. Using AWS’s data lake and visualization capabilities, The Lighthouse will be able to increase its revenue and direct additional resources to enhance programs that provide job training and employment for people who are blind or visually impaired.

“AWS played a critical role when The Chicago Lighthouse had to quickly pivot to enabling remote work during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring hundreds of individuals could continue their employment and benefits,” said Janet. P. Szlyk, President and CEO of The Chicago Lighthouse. “I am thrilled to work with them again to revitalize our Lighthouse Industries manufacturing and shipping services, where 80% of the employees are individuals who are blind or visually impaired.”

Now in its sixth year, the AWS IMAGINE Grant program provides vital resources to nonprofit organizations looking to deploy cloud technology as a central tool to achieve mission goals. As part of the program, AWS seeks proposals for big ideas on how to leverage technology in new and innovative ways to accelerate impact in local and global communities.

The Lighthouse was named a winner in the Momentum to Modernize category which recognizes foundational technology projects. The organization will receive up to $50,000 in unrestricted funding, up to $30,000 in AWS Promotional Credits, and project implementation support. Proposals were judged on several factors including the innovative and unique nature of the project, impact on mission-critical goals, and clearly defined outcomes and milestones.

“I’m inspired by the ways in which our IMAGINE Grant winners are innovating with technology to improve lives worldwide,” said Allyson Fryhoff, Managing Director of Nonprofit and Global Health at AWS. “We look forward to collaborating with these organizations as they leverage the cloud to scale their impact and help solve some of society’s biggest challenges.”

Over 85,000 nonprofit organizations worldwide use AWS to increase their impact and advance mission goals. Through multiple programs tailored specifically to the nonprofit community, AWS can enable nonprofits of all sizes to overcome barriers to technology adoption, while enhancing the scale, performance, and capabilities of mission operations.

For more information on the AWS IMAGINE Grant, visit aws.amazon.com/imagine-grant.