Health Foundation Awards $200K in Grants

By Desiree Parker Thursday, July 07, 2011

The Williamsburg Community Health Foundation announced several more grant awards totaling $219,000.

“The recession has put particular stress on agencies serving uninsured and underinsured clients,” said Jeanne Zeidler, WCHF president and chief executive officer. “It’s no secret that demand for services continues to rise while resources have become scarcer.

“These agencies continue performing vital work that strengthens the community as a whole.”

A $20,000 award will go to The Arc of Greater Williamsburg to support a program promoting exercise and wellness. Adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities are at much greater risk of obesity and its complications than the general population, according to the Foundation.

A $40,000 grant will be awarded to Avalon: A Center for Women and Children to support a self-sufficiency program that helps women break cycles of domestic abuse. The self-sufficiency program served 193 clients during 2010.

Child and Family Connection will receive a $37,000 award to fund a behavioral counseling and intervention program for the area’s uninsured and underinsured Latino population. The WCHF reports that Greater Williamsburg’s Latino population has nearly doubled since 1990.

Colonial Community Corrections will pick up $35,000 for a substance abuse treatment program working in cooperation with regional law enforcement agencies. The program has a 90 percent success rate.

A $20,000 grant will be awarded to FISH, Inc., an all-volunteer organization providing personal hygiene and household cleaning supplies to clients in crisis. FISH estimates it will serve 5,000 people during 2011.

Lackey Free Clinic will receive $32,000 to support its Oral Health Access Project. The funding will provide more than 700 patient visits during 2011 and 2012. Lackey, like many other non-profit clinics, is expanding oral health services to address the correlation between oral health, behavioral health and general health.

Lackey Free Clinic will also receive a $35,000 grant to support its transition to electronic medical records.

Electronic records will give clinicians access to more complete patient data and result in more informed diagnostic and treatment decisions. The project also anticipates federal requirements for more detailed record keeping on patient outcomes.

The Foundation has two grant cycles each year; there's one more cycle to go this year. The Foundation has awarded more than $2.6 million to 18 local health-related nonprofits over the last month.

Letters of intent for the next grant cycle are due July 25. More information about the Foundation’s grant-making process is available online.