The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce celebrated its 125th anniversary on Thursday, Sept. 28, but it wasn't getting gifts — it was giving them. The Community Betterment Foundation, the Chamber’s charitable arm, awarded $10,000 grants to 13 local nonprofits.

Grant recipients were chosen through a combination of committee scoring + public voting. Funds for the grants were gathered through support from the Chamber's member businesses and ticket sales from the anniversary celebration.

Without further ado, here are the grant recipients:

Stay up to date with the Chamber throughout the coming year for spotlights on each of the local nonprofits. And in the meantime, you can explore the awardees' work and learn how you can help support their missions.