Health, Human Services grants include $86,000 to address homelessness
Akron Community Foundation’s board of directors recently approved grants totaling $1.8 million, including $1.3 million in grants from 82 designated, donor-advised, agency endowment and scholarship funds, and $495,468 in competitive health and human services grants chosen by the organization’s Community Investment Committee.
This quarter, the Community Investment Committee focused on the issue of homelessness, distributing $86,000 to seven local organizations that are working to provide housing and supportive services.
Community Support Services will receive one such grant to create a centralized intake and outreach center to direct Summit County’s homeless residents to the services and providers they need. Community Support Services provides comprehensive behavioral and health services to Summit County adults living with severe and persistent mental illness, including outreach programs for homeless individuals and those at risk of becoming homeless. According to a recent survey of the homeless population in Summit County, more than half suffer from a serious mental illness.
“Having all intake services under one roof will assist in reducing the number of individuals who are homeless and don’t know where to go for help,” said Terry Dalton, president and CEO of Community Support Services. “It will also help those who give up after going place to place only to be turned away because the agency doesn’t serve ‘that category of homeless individuals.’”
This new intake center is a collaboration with Info Line Inc. and will serve as a clearinghouse for organizations across Summit County including Family Promise of Summit County and the Veterans Administration’s Community Resource & Referral Center.
An additional $85,500 in health and human services grants was recommended by the Bonnie L. and Ernest R. Estep Fund, the David R. and Cheryl L. Venarge Fund, and three anonymous funds through the community foundation’s grant co-investment program. Their funding joins that of the following field-of-interest and unrestricted funds, which were created by charitable residents to support emerging needs in our community: Adam Fund, Jean S. and Thomas J. Amer Fund, V.E. (Tom) Atkins Fund, Betty R. Axline Fund, Board of Directors Annual Giving Fund, Dick and Chris Chenoweth Fund, Community Fund, Charles C. and Dorathea S. Dilley Fund, Gala Fund, C. Colmery Gibson Polsky Fund, Vivienne S. and Russell R. Johnstone Family Fund, Arthur Kelly Fund, John S. Knight Fund, William C. Krisher Fund, Polsky Fund, Helen S. Robertson Fund, James G. Robertson Fund, Roush Memorial Fund, Sanatorium Contingent Fund, Shaw Foundation Fund, and William C. and Betty J. Zekan Fund.
Together, their grants will support these 42 health and human services programs:
ACCESS Inc., to shelter homeless women and children and to renovate the Step II program facility, $35,000
Akron Area YMCA, to help low-income families and individuals participate in YMCA programs, $7,500
Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank, to serve an estimated 24 million meals to families struggling with food insecurity through direct distribution and food pantry capacity building, and for the Feeding Kids Initiative, which provides more than 2,500 children per month with food through backpacks and after-school snacks, $53,500
Akron Children’s Hospital, to provide car seats for needy families, $5,000
Akron General Medical Center, for the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners program, which teaches nurses to recognize and document signs of abuse and violence, $15,968
American Red Cross of Summit & Portage Counties, to support the Home Fire Campaign, which seeks to reduce the number of home fires and fire-related injuries through prevention education, and to provide assistance to those affected by home fires, $5,000
AxessPointe Community Health Center Inc., to provide quality, affordable health care to individuals and families throughout the community, $10,000
Battered Women’s Shelter, to provide crisis intervention and emergency services to victims of domestic violence and rape, $35,000
Bridges Summit County, to support the Getting Ahead and Bridges Out of Poverty workshops, $28,500
Christ Child Society of Akron, to purchase new school clothes and outerwear for children from low-income families, $15,000
Coleman Professional Services, to support behavioral health and peer support services for refugees in Summit County, $5,000
Community Legal Aid Services Inc., for the Health Education Advocacy and Law Project, which helps patients address non-medical barriers to health, including economic instability and insecure housing, $10,000
Community Support Services, to create a centralized intake and outreach center for Summit County’s homeless population, $15,000
CORE Furniture Bank, to provide donated furniture to needy families in Summit County, $5,000
Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy, to support Carrot Cash, a food assistance program that matches the fresh produce purchases of SNAP card users up to $15, $21,000
Embracing Futures Inc., to provide oral health education to elementary school students, $5,000
Family Promise of Summit County Inc., to provide shelter and counseling to homeless families with children, $7,500
First Glance Student Center Inc., to provide support, mentoring and parenting education to young moms and dads through the Teen Moms program, $10,000
Flashes of Hope, to provide professional photography services for children with life-threatening illnesses, $3,000
Freedom House for Women Inc., for programming to prevent homelessness and preserve the family unit, $8,000
Girls on the Run Northeast Ohio, for a mentoring program for girls in Summit County that combines fitness training with discussions about personal values, respect and self-worth, $5,000
GriefCare Place, for support groups for individuals grieving the death of a loved one, $2,500
H.M. Life Opportunity Services, to provide school supplies, clothing, tutoring and counseling to children transitioning from homelessness, $8,000
Info Line Inc., for the food pantry clearinghouse and 24-hour emergency phone line, which refers at-risk individuals to food pantries and other immediate resources, $20,000
Interval Brotherhood Home, to measure the long-term outcomes of individuals who have gone through addiction recovery and treatment, $10,000
Jewish Community Center of Akron, for Kickin’ Up KidSpace, which emphasizes healthy lifestyle choices for school-aged children, $2,500
Jewish Family Service of Akron Ohio, to prevent the eviction of seniors in subsidized housing through counseling, case management and tenant education, $5,000
L.I.N.K.S. Community & Family Services, to provide educational services and activities that help elderly individuals preserve their independence, dignity and well-being, $10,000
Mature Services Inc., to provide essential in-home assistance, including personal care, laundry and cleaning services, to low-income seniors who live alone, $10,000
Mobile Meals Inc., to provide meals and medically prescribed supplements for children, elderly individuals and people with disabilities, $35,000
NAMI Summit County, to provide basic household items to people with mental illness who are transitioning from homelessness, $5,000
OPEN M, to support the free clinic and to provide employment assistance to people in poverty through the Community Works Connection Program, $28,500
Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, to provide low-income women at the Akron Health Center with long-acting reversible contraception, $20,000
Prevent Blindness Ohio, to provide vision screenings and eye care products to at-risk individuals in Summit County, $7,500
Shelter Care Inc., to provide health and wellness programming for runaway and homeless youth, $7,500
South Street Ministries, for capital improvements to the Front Porch Café, $22,500
Stewart’s Caring Place, to provide support services for cancer patients and their families, $10,000
Summit County Fatherhood Initiative, to help men become better fathers through education and mentoring programs, $20,000
United Disability Services, to help people with severe disabilities secure employment by providing comprehensive assessments and vocational counseling, $15,000
Victim Assistance Program, to provide 24-hour support and advocacy for victims of crime and sudden trauma, $22,000
Victory Gallop Inc., to provide therapeutic horseback riding programs for individuals with behavioral challenges and life-threatening illnesses, $5,000
Women’s Auxiliary Board of the Summit County Children’s Home, to purchase beds for kids in the care of children’s services, $10,000
About Akron Community Foundation
Celebrating 60 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation embraces and enhances the work of charitable people who make a permanent commitment to the good of the community. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. As of Nov. 20, 2015, it is a philanthropic endowment of more than $176 million with a growing family of more than 500 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation’s funds have awarded approximately $128 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.akroncf.org.
