The Otto Bremer Foundation in St. Paul has announced grants totaling more than $5.9 million to local nonprofits.

The grants will support efforts to help area residents meet basic needs such as food, housing, and health care. Grant recipients include the Women's Foundation of Minnesota, which was awarded $500,000 for its Minnesota Girls Are Not for Sale, a sex trafficking preventioninitiative; Tubman, which received $400,000 for its Safe, Sound, and Smart Capital Campaign; and Merrick Community Services, which was awarded $360,000 for a new multi-service community center and related programs that will increase its capacity to serve low-income individuals and families on the east side of St. Paul.

The foundation also awarded $250,000 to Friends of the St. Paul Public Library for its New Legacy of Learning capital campaign; $240,000 to the Higher Ground Academy and Charter School for KidStart, an afterschool program for low-income Somali and Oromo youth; and $125,000 to the Greater Twin Cities United Way to increase the employability of low-income adults within the Twin Cities region. In addition, the Headwaters Foundation for Justice was awarded $40,000 in support of its Twin Cities African American Leadership Forum, a project that works to engage the community on critical issues.

For a complete list of grant recipients, visit the Bremer Foundation Web site.