CACF awards almost $190K to River Region nonprofits

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - On Wednesday, 25 River Region nonprofits that support family and wellness initiatives in Montgomery, Lowndes, Macon, Autauga and Elmore counties were awarded grant money totaling $189,727 from the Central Alabama Community Foundation, or CACF.

“It’s amazing what these organizations do to help those less fortunate in our community,” said CACF President Burton Crenshaw. “Anybody can be a donor with a Central Alabama Community Foundation, and we’ll give that money right back out to where it’s needed.”

Organizations like Easterseals say without this money they would not be able to cover the cost of hippotherapy sessions for children with autism and developmental delays.

“It’s important that I distinguish this from a therapeutic riding program. It is not a therapeutic riding program. It is actually traditional occupational therapy done utilizing the horse as an piece of equipment. So the child is encouraged to reach their occupational goals utilizing the horse,” said *Debbie Lynn, executive director for Easterseales.

Rhonda McDavid with the Southeastern Diabetes Education Services says for them the funds will provide an opportunity for children living with Type 1 diabetes to attend Camp Seale Harris.

“Children can learn to live healthy and well and a very long life if they learn how to take care of their diabetes 24/7, and that’s what we do at Camp Seale Harris,” said McDavid.

The Family, Food, and Medical Grants awarded are part of the Family Wellness and Education Grant Cycle that CACF manages. Funds from these grants will go directly toward assisting many within these communities.

Central Alabama Community Foundation - $101,722

Family grants - $33,916

$6,000 to CASA of Montgomery County to support costs of CASA’s recruitment, training and retention of volunteers to pair as advocates with children assigned to the Montgomery County Family Court’s care
$5,254 to Catholic Social Services Montgomery to provide direct aid of utilities, food, clothing and medication to financially insecure clients
$5,844 to Mental Health America Montgomery to support programming costs for the Psychosocial Clubhouse, which provides socialization opportunities and educational activities for clients with serious mental health illnesses
$8,700 to the Noah Foundation to support costs of the day program for young adults with disabilities including transportation to outings and meals for the students
$8,118 to United Methodist Children’s Home to support the costs of the family intervention specialist to serve 10 families residing at Mary Ellen’s Hearth

Food grants - $33,903

$6,703 to Common Ground Montgomery to purchase food to provide a complete meal for afterschool students each weekday during the school year
$10,000 to Fathers of St. Edmund Southern Missions Inc. to purchase fresh food from Black Belt farmers to distribute to financially insecure Lowndes County residents through the Good Shepherd Community Center’s Food Mart
$7,200 to MBA Community Ministries Inc. to purchase food for distribution through a network of churches and food pantries in Lowndes and Montgomery counties
$10,000 to Montgomery Area Council on Aging to support the food costs of the Meals On Wheels northern route

Medical grants - $33,903

$7,500 to Impact Alabama, a student service Initiative to provide vision screening for 350 Head Start/pre-K/day care students and follow-up eye care for 35 students in Lowndes, Macon and Montgomery counties in partnership with SightSavers
$6,733 to Medical Outreach Ministries to support costs of medication and home monitoring supplies for Montgomery County residents
$13,670 to Shorter Fire Auxiliary to purchase a medical chest compression device and charging equipment to provide high quality chest compressions over an extended period
$6,000 to Smile-A-Mile to provide the annual costs of serving five families in the Montgomery area impacted by pediatric cancer with summer camp, hospital outreach and group events

Autauga Area Community Foundation - $12,400

Family grants - $5,000

$2,500 to Butterfly Bridge Children’s Advocacy Center to provide forensic interviews, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy and caregiver support sessions to two Autauga County children
$2,500 to Family Sunshine Center to support the costs of a children’s therapist to deliver evidence-based children’s counseling services in Autauga County

Food grants - $2,500

$2,500 to Montgomery Area Food Bank to provide two mobile pantry deliveries in Autauga County to serve food-insecure families

Medical grants - $4,900

$2,500 to Medical Outreach Ministries to support costs of medication and home monitoring supplies for Autauga County residents
$2,400 to Smile-A-Mile to provide the annual cost of serving two families impacted by pediatric cancer in Autauga County with summer camp, hospital outreach and group events

Elmore County Community Foundation - $15,000

Family grants - $5,000

$2,500 to Butterfly Bridge Children’s Advocacy to provide forensic interviews, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy and caregiver support sessions to two Elmore County children
$2,500 to Family Sunshine Center to support the costs of a children’s therapist to deliver evidence-based children’s counseling services in Elmore County

Food grants - $7,500

$2,500 to Church of the Epiphany to purchase food for the Beans and Rice Ministry that will increase the amount given to current clients and expand the program to new clients with 25 pounds of food provided to 45-50 families monthly
$2,500 to Montgomery Area Food Bank to provide two mobile pantry deliveries in Elmore County to serve food-insecure families
$2,500 to W.E.L.C.O.M.E. Inc. to purchase food, toiletries and household supplies for distribution to Elmore County residents

Medical grants - $2,500

$2,500 to Medical Outreach Ministries to support the costs of medication and home monitoring supplies for Elmore County residents

CACF Technical Assistance grants $4,080.00

$1,580 to First Choice Women’s Medical Center to purchase three iPads, protective accessories and an annual subscription to HopeSync to create a system of digitized sharing of educational resources and medical information with clients
$2,500 to Samaritan Counseling Center to support the costs of upgrading laptops used by therapists to meet the current requirements of telehealth software

CACF field of interest grants - $56,525

CACF Merle S. & Mack C. Hunt Diabetes Grant - $44,500

$4,500 to Children’s of Alabama to provide the cost of a certified diabetes educator and a registered nurse at 10 of the monthly Montgomery Diabetes Clinic days
$20,000 to Medical Outreach Ministries to expand the free one-on-one diabetes education program to 10 new clients and to provide annual supplies for all 25 participants
$20,000 to Southeastern Diabetes Education Services to provide $800 scholarships to Camp Seale Harris for 25 children in the Montgomery County area where they learn how to effectively manage their diabetes conditions

CACF Group Homes for Children Grant - $10,000

$10,000 to Easter Seals Central Alabama to support the costs of an instructor to conduct two eight-week hippotherapy sessions with 16 clients ages 4-14 years with autism and developmental delays

CACF Mental Health Grant - $1,200

$1,200 to Mental Health America Montgomery to support transportation costs for clients to and from the Psychosocial Clubhouse program

Also this week, CACF awarded $65,000 to nonprofits in the Wiregrass area.

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