North Penn Community Health Foundation Awards $792,550 in Grants
The North Penn Community Health Foundation has awarded 14 grants totaling $792,550 to local nonprofit organizations dedicated to improving the health and well-being of at-risk populations in the North Penn and Central Bucks communities. Since its inception five years ago the Foundation has provided more than $5.7 million in grant support to local nonprofit organizations.
Grants awarded in June range in size from $7,550 to $160,000 and include support for programs within all five of the Foundation's strategic priorities.
Four grants were awarded to promote access to health services for at-risk populations including the underinsured and uninsured. The North Penn Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) was awarded $150,000 over one year in continued support of its Children's Clinic and North Penn Smiles oral health program. Grant funds will support an expansion in Children's Clinic operations to a full, five day weekly schedule and provide a full time social worker who will assist patients with insurance issues, provide guidance in securing supportive benefits and offer assistance appropriate to sustaining or improving patient health and well-being. Grant funds will also supplement the cost of providing preventive and restorative oral health services to children and adults. The VNA will integrate these supportive services to improve efficiency and begin to track key quality patient care indicators. Additional grants to safety net providers in the community include $27,500 over one year to the Free Clinic of Doylestown for medical and dental services for the uninsured; $20,000 to the Bucks County Health Improvement Partnership in continued support of its children's collaborative dental program; and $34,000 to the Montgomery County Community College Foundation in continued support of the oral health hygiene community outreach program.
The Food Trust was awarded $100,000 over one year in renewed support and expansion of the North Penn Community Nutrition Program. Over the past year The Coalition for Community Nutrition was established. Its members include local USDA-sponsored food cupboards, voluntary civic and faith-based cupboards and local farmers. The Coalition has worked to better meet the needs of hungry and under-nourished individuals and families residing in our community through increased procurement and distribution of nutritious foods with a particular emphasis on fresh fruits and vegetables and the promotion of healthy eating habits. Over the next year the Food Trust will work with the Coalition to develop leadership capacity, strategic planning and fundraising programs to sustain its activities. It will continue to foster the development of promising mechanisms to improve the consistent delivery and distribution of fresh foods including the expansion of partnerships with local super markets and farmer's markets. Additional plans include engagement of youth and older adults to improve food security through school-based, after-school and community gardening projects.
The Bucks County Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence was awarded $125,000 over two years in support to establish one or more community coalitions in the North Penn, Souderton Area and/or Wissahickon School Districts to combat under-aged teenage drinking and substance abusing behaviors. The Council will deploy its staff to facilitate volunteer efforts and conduct a local needs assessment designed to elicit information about the greatest areas of need for community organization and coalition building. The goal of this initial phase of work is to engage, educate, activate and support volunteers to create a community coalition or coalitions and then to leverage funding from state and national sources to support further growth and development. Ultimately volunteers will establish active community coalitions whose roles could include a full range of prevention, intervention and recovery support services.
The Health Promotion Council of Southeastern Pennsylvania received a grant of $7,550 over four months to develop an evaluation plan for the WISE SNAC program, a community-based intervention model designed by the Centers for Disease Control to assist local communities in addressing problems associated with childhood obesity. Over the past two years the WISE SNAC staff has worked in the North Penn, Souderton Area and Wissahickon School Districts initially focusing on three of the eight evidenced-based program components of the Coordinated School Health Program that assists schools, students and families to systematically focus their energies to maintain the well-being of young people.
Other grants awarded include:
- $160,000 to Family Services of Montgomery County in support of a comprehensive, agency wide performance management initiative designed to transform and evolve the agency into a high performing and learning organization
- $56,800 to the Greater North Penn Collaborative for Health and Human Services in continued support of the North Penn Nonprofit Academy
- $32,700 to Community Housing Services in support of organizational and operational assessment, business planning and technical assistance
- $25,000 to the University of Pennsylvania, Field Center for Social Policy, Practice and Research, to design and develop the Montgomery County Child Advocacy Center and its programs
- $20,000 to the North Penn Valley Boys and Girls Club in support of the expansion of the Triple Play program to the Indian Valley site
- $18,000 to the Women's Center of Montgomery County in support of strategic and business planning for the North Penn regional office
- $16,000 to Family Service Association of Bucks County for case management services for HIV positive adults.
