When awarding grants to local causes, the Johnson County Community Foundation picked projects and causes that are improving the lives of children who are hungry, who have disabilities, who have made poor choices or gotten into trouble or who are experiencing what could possibly be the most difficult time in their life.
As the foundation prepares for a new round of grants this fall, here is a look at what the spring award winners of Big Impact Grants have been able to do with the thousands of dollars their programs or efforts received.
The foundation received 12 applications this year, and four projects were picked to receive grants totaling $113,019. Some of that money was also distributed to each of the county’s school district’s education foundations, said Stephanie Fox, the foundation’s program officer for grants and scholarships.
A committee of 12 community members selects who receives grants, Fox said. They look for several components: Does it address a community need? Does it improve the quality of life in the county? Is it a partnership effort? Will it be able to sustain itself and have a long-term impact? Would it duplicate an effort that already exists?
Effort handles logistics of getting meat to pantries
The biggest chunk of money this spring went to a statewide effort to get more meat to food banks, which has been lacking because meat can perish quickly.
Promise for Protein got $25,000 to process hundreds of pounds of pork which has been distributed to food banks in 62 counties in Indiana. Fox said about 12 percent of that pork goes to the Interchurch Food Pantry in Johnson County.
This is the first time a community foundation grant was given to an agency or effort outside the county.
“The reason they chose to go with that was to set an example for other community foundations that it is important to make sure we’re serving our community at large as well. They got the most money because they asked for the most money,” Fox said.
The foundation awards the full grant request, or does not make an award, Fox said. The committee does not change the amount requested.
Joel Spencer, a representative with United Animal Health who helped start Promise for Protein, said meat is seriously lacking at food banks because of the time it takes to process, package and truck it to various food pantries around the state. Often times, by the time it arrives at the a food pantry, it is already close to its expiration date, he said.
“Protein is the key nutrient that’s lacking in assistance programs, but it’s one of the most critical nutrients needed. It’s hard to deal with and it’s expensive, so we (Promise for Protein) organize the logistics and resources,” Spencer said.
They help buy pork, ground it, package it in single pounds and distribute it to food pantries in as little time as possible so that they can actually use all of it before it goes bad, he said.
“It’s all wrapped in paper and kept under freezer conditions,” Spencer said. “It doesn’t take long for it all to disappear because unfortunately the need is still greater than the supply.”
Teens learn grant process for good cause
The new, all-inclusive playground at Blue Heron Park in Franklin is the brainchild of the mayor’s youth leadership council.
Mayor Steve Barnett said it was the teens’ idea to apply for the grant. In fact, they presented the project to the selection committee.
“The kids knew the grant was available, and they actually picked up on it,” Barnett said. “I helped them with the proposal, but they submitted it and everything. Of course I am proud, but they need to be proud of themselves. This is something that will last in the community for several years.”
Planning and design of the $300,000 playground began last year. The city covered half of that. The $24,254 awarded by the community foundation helped cover the cost of the playground equipment.
Features of Unity Park, inside Blue Heron Park off U.S. 31, include a merry-go-round with seats deep enough for a child with disabilities, a slide with rollers for children who can’t push themselves, a seesaw that can be used by children in wheelchairs and a rubber floor that makes it easy for those children or children who use walkers to get around.
“It is being used more than any other playground in the city,” Barnett said.
About 20 Franklin high schoolers participate in the youth council each year. This was the first time they applied for a community foundation grant, but it likely won’t be the last, he said.
“We want them to choose their projects to give back to their community,” Barnett said.
Nineveh program steers teens, their families in right direction
In Nineveh, a grant helped the Nineveh Heritage Committee, a small non-profit group, launch a program that is helping get teens and their families back on track.
Strengthening Families is a program for teens at Indian Creek High School who are facing expulsion for drug- or alcohol-related problems, among other issues. Simultaneously, it helps the guardians of those teens learn ways to steer their kids in the right direction and manage the stress of the situation.
By early September, five families had signed up for the program, which kicked off at the start of the school year, coordinator Nancy Voris said. They have room for 10, and they expect more families will sign up as they get further into the school year. School administrators will tell high school students facing expulsion that they can participate in the program, or repeat the school year. The choice is theirs, she said.
Families will meet with therapists weekly through December, with teens in one meeting and parents in another session. They cover the same topics each week, but from a different angle. Before the sessions start each week, they all share a family meal. Voris said that’s something, more often than not, they do not do at home. But it’s so important to building healthy relationships, she said.
“Family dinner is a part of every week. We’ll be starting every night off by families sitting down to eat together, because it may be something they don’t do too often. We also provide child care and tutoring for the younger kids because we want them to be able to sit down and eat dinner with their family, too. So overall, it’s a good family-building experience,” she said.
The $16,000 grant pays for facilitators and food.
Voris first heard about the program, which was already an option for students in Morgan County, during a rural opioid symposium.
“When I heard how good it was with prevention, I decided to give it a shot. As far as I know, this is the first one here. So we’re kind of a test, a pilot. We deal with all kinds of family issues,” she said.
The group is hopeful they see some positive results at the end of the semester and they are able to keep more kids in school. But they won’t know until December, she said. They hope to continue the program for years to come and help as many families as they can, Voris said.
Grant allows nonprofit to spruce up Child Advocacy Center, buy high-tech medical camera
ASSIST is a local nonprofit that has partnered with the Child Advocacy Center, which is housed at the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office, and other state and local agencies to offer support to abuse victims of all ages.
With $17,765 from the community foundation, the organization plans to buy a forensic camera, which will be the first in Johnson County, ASSIST’s community outreach advocate Ashley Reagan said.
The camera will allow hospital staff to take detailed photos of any person who goes to the emergency room and reports being abused.
“The best example I can give is when somebody is strangled, like domestic violence, with this camera you can see the deep-tissue bruising that you can’t see with the naked eye or a traditional camera,” she said.
“The forensic camera, we’re really, really excited about. We have waited a very long time to be able to purchase it.”
With the grant, ASSIST was also able to improve the Child Advocacy Center with new paint, chairs, rugs and child-friendly artwork. Enough water and snacks were purchased to stock the center for the rest of the year.
“When families would come in there, it was a very sterile environment. Having visited other child advocacy centers, there is lots of color and it’s very warm and inviting. But that is not the case with ours. So we wanted to make it a little bit more welcoming and try to make families feel a little bit more comfortable,” Reagan said.
“Right now, there is just two black chairs, an aisle and a little table. So we were wanting kind of a comfy chair that kids and teens could just relax in while they’re disclosing some not-so-great information to the interviewers.”
The center is used any time a child or family needs to be interviewed about allegations of abuse.
ASSIST was also able to buy a printer and send staff to training workshops.
Reagan said ASSIST receives a lot of community support, and was able to highlight that in their presentation to the grant’s selection committee.
“I mean, it’s called the B.I.G. impact grant, and I think a lot of the stuff that we asked for makes a big impact. At the Child Advocacy Center, a lot of families are going through what may end up being the toughest time of their lives. And with this camera, it could really change a lot of people’s lives. Usually you don’t find local grants for this much money, so when they funded us fully for everything we asked for, we were really excited.”
