LCRA awards $10,200 grant for improvements to Rockwood Community Center

Newly levelled foundation, updated flooring will help center provide a more comfortable space for gatherings

Oct. 26, 2023

A representative from the Lower Colorado River Authority presents a $10,200 grant to the Rockwood Cemetery Association for improvements to the Rockwood Community Center. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured, from left to right, are: Jimmie Davis and Nola Cooper, Rockwood Cemetery Association committee members; Jennifer Rutherford, association supporter; Cooper Hogg, LCRA Regional Affairs representative; Sabrina Smith, association director; Tracy Eoff and Bettie Duus, association supporters; Ken Hall, association committee member and postmaster; Tim Abernathy, association president; Gay Abernathy, association secretary/bookkeeper; Paul Ralston, association vice president; and Judy Ralston, association supporter.

COLEMAN COUNTY, Texas – With the help of a $10,200 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority, the Rockwood Cemetery Association soon will be able to make needed improvements to the town’s community center.

The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $2,706 in matching funds from the cemetery association, will be used to level the foundation and install new flooring in the Rockwood Community Center.

“The building is starting to lean to one side, so we really need to get the foundation fixed and then update all of the flooring,” said Gay Abernathy, secretary/bookkeeper of the cemetery association.

“There’s still a door in the kitchen floor from when there was a root cellar before the building was moved,” she said.

The community center has been an integral part of the Rockwood community since 1957, hosting events such as quilting clubs, community dinners, funeral lunches and homecoming events. Abernathy has fond memories of the quilting club, which included her mother.

“The quilting ladies would do raffles or an auction for a quilt during homecoming and use those funds to keep the lights on in the community center,” Abernathy said.

Now, the center relies on donations to maintain the building.

“Folks will donate at homecoming or in memory of a loved one who is buried here at Rockwood Cemetery,” she said.

The center hosts community gatherings for Thanksgiving and Christmas meals and serves as an emergency safe harbor location for a nearby school district. Supporters hope the upcoming building improvements will help the center continue to serve the community for years to come.

“We have a small community with limited resources and we’re so excited to be able to do these improvements,” Abernathy said.

The community grant is one of 45 grants awarded recently through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves.

Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in January. More information is available at lcra.org/cdpp.

About LCRA

The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering outdoor adventures at more than 40 parks along the Colorado River from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality of life of the Texans we serve through water stewardship, energy and community service. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934 and receives no state appropriations.

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