ADA, MI – A tiny nonprofit group that brings laughter to grieving people was stunned to receive a $10,000 grant Stephen Colbert, the satirist and comedian who created “The Colbert Report.”

“It came out of no place,” said Bart Sumner, an actor and writer who formed Healing Improv in 2012. When his wife called to tell him the news, he said, “I nearly drove off Ada Drive. It absolutely blew me away.”

Healing Improv runs comedy improv workshops that aim to relieve stress, provide emotional connections and laughter for people who are grieving. Sumner created the organization after his 10-year-old son, David, died in 2009. He realized that performing and teaching helped him survive that devastating loss.

“Laughter and tears are right next to each other in the emotional scale,” Sumner said.

Related: Actor copes with loss of young son with Healing Improv workshops

The group operates on a small scale. The workshops are free. Sumner donates his time. It has raised about $4,000 in the past 18 months to cover some travel expenses and rental space.

The $10,000 grant makes a big difference for the group, Sumner said. It will help pay for advertising to reach more participants and more travel costs to partner with groups requesting workshops.

“This will really allow us to spread our net out and help people all over the place,” Sumner said.

The money comes from The Stephen Colbert AmeriCone Dream Fund of the Coastal Community Foundation. Colbert donates his proceeds from the sale of Ben & Jerry’s AmeriCone Dream Ice Cream to the charity.

Colbert hosted the Comedy Central television show “The Colbert Report” for nine years, ending last month, and is taking over CBS’s The Late Show after David Letterman reties in May.

Max Werner, a member of Colbert’s writing staff, is familiar with Healing Improv – and Sumner said he is the one who recommended the West Michigan group for the grant.

In addition to the workshops, Sumner writes a blog at www.healing-improv.org and has published a book, "Healing Improv: A Journey through Grief to Laughter." It is all done with his son, David, in mind.

“It’s my way of paying it all forward, to do something good in his name, to use what I’ve been doing to help others,” Sumner said.

Healing Improv's next workshop will be 2-4 p.m. Jan. 31, at Grand Rapids Civic Theatre. For information, go to healing-improv.org.

Sue Thoms covers health care for MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. Email her at sthoms1@mlive.com or follow her on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.