|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: 251-4000, Carol Harmon x 113
THE COLUMBUS FOUNDATION AND DONORS AWARD $1.7
MILLION TO CENTRAL OHIO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
* * *
Foundation awards annual health grants
Columbus, OH (July 23, 2004) — The Governing Committee of The Columbus Foundation approved grants totaling $1,719,527 million at its July 22 meeting.
- $798,595 in grants from discretionary funds for community needs
were approved, including $733,545 for projects in the health field.
- $920,932 in grants were approved from donors advised, designated, and scholarship funds.
"We continue to prioritize the funding of innovative projects with
our discretionary grants that can have the maximum impact on the
community’s greatest needs," said The Columbus Foundation President and
CEO, Douglas F. Kridler.
"The Columbus Foundation continues to prioritize the funding of
innovative projects that can result in a healthier central Ohio," said
The Columbus Foundation President and CEO, Douglas F. Kridler. "We’re
focused on making sure our discretionary grants have the maximum impact
on the community’s greatest needs."
Grants of Note In Franklin County alone, 346 babies were born prematurely during
2002. These preterm infants weighed in at less than 3 lbs. 5 oz., at
birth and immediately began to fight for their lives. One hundred
twenty of those babies lost that battle.
A $55,000 grant from the Charles R. and Irene M. Mougey Fund to Grant-Riverside Methodist Hospitals Foundation, Inc., dba OhioHealth Foundation,
will help support the creation of the Mothers’ Milk Bank of Central
Ohio to collect, screen, process, and distribute by prescription,
donated mothers’ breast milk for preterm, ill, and term babies.
For the infant who is failing to thrive because of feeding
intolerance, milk from a milk bank may literally be a life saver. In
the absence of an infant's own mother's milk, donor milk offers all the
benefits of human milk, such as easy digestibility and immune
substances to protect against disease. It also contains growth factors
that can nourish the development of immature tissues and repair of
tissues damaged by illness, helping an infant to rehabilitate. Human
milk may also prevent certain conditions in prematurity that are
life-threatening.
With only seven milk banks nationwide and none in Ohio, this milk
bank to be located at Grant Hospital, but accessible to all central
Ohio hospitals, will provide an important and valuable resource in
lowering the infant mortality rate, and helping babies get a strong,
healthy start through better nutrition.
A $27,550 grant will support the 2004 Mobility Summit, "One Child. One School. One Successful Year."
The grant to Project GRAD will be used to bring together local
community leaders, housing officials, social service providers, and
national experts to discuss the impact of mobility on children and
schools. Findings from the Student Mobility Research Project,
commissioned by The Columbus Foundation in the 2003, will be presented
along with strategies to reduce the number of students in grades K-12
who change schools during the school year in central Ohio will be
presented.
Discretionary grants in the health field
The following nonprofit organizations received grants and are listed by area of impact:
Childhood and Youth Development
Children’s Defense Fund – $20,000 from the Charles R. and Irene M.
Mougey Fund to provide a final year of matching dollars for the
Covering Kids and Families Project that seeks to increase enrollment of
parents and children on Medicaid through outreach and coordinated
health insurance plans.
Children’s Hospital Foundation – $48,500 from the Florence E. Horch and John Charles Sharon funds
to support a partnership between Children’s Hospital Behavioral Health
Division and Columbus Public Schools to provide mental health treatment
to minority adolescents.
Children’s Hospital Foundation – $60,000 from the Alfred L. Willson Charitable Fund to support indigent care to Franklin County children in the clinic programs.
Children’s Hunger Alliance – $75,000 from the Robert Bartels and Charles R. and Irene M. Mougey funds to provide general operating support to reduce hunger for low-income children in central Ohio.
Columbus Health Department – $65,000 from the A. Irene Emswiler and Mary Marjorie Wittwer funds
to support Healthy Children, Healthy Weights Toolbox Project to address
childhood obesity in Columbus through a coordinated, evidence-based
approach.
Columbus Speech and Hearing Center – $48,000 from the Geraldine C. Bennett, Henry E. Coyle, and Charlotte and Ben Kahn Visually and Hearing Impaired Endowment funds
to support the purchase of new audiology testing equipment to allow for
better diagnosis of hearing loss in very young children.
The Keren Emrich Foundation – $15,000 from the Betty Totten and Rebecca J. Wickersham funds
to support the Road of Life prevention program targeted to fourth grade
students in Columbus Public Schools to encourage healthy lifestyle
habits that could prevent diseases related to obesity and inactivity.
Traylee Afterschool Bibleschool – $5,500 from the Charles R. and Irene M. Mougey Fund to provide HIV/AIDS prevention education to middle- and high-school aged youth in the American Addition community.
Health Care Support for the Underserved
American Heart Association, Inc. – $10,320 from the Gladys H. Goodwin Fund to support certified fitness and nutrition instructors.
FIRSTLINK, Inc. – $18,725 from the Alice and Robert Estrich Fund
to support the Dental OPTIONS Program, which provides free or low cost
dental care to residents of central Ohio. Funds will support the
implementation of a recruitment and retention program for dentist
volunteers and the hiring of a part-time employee for the program.
Lower Lights Christian Health Center – $35,000 from the Charles R. and Irene M. Mougey and Karl B. and Helen E. Webster funds
to increase the capacity of the health center by hiring a medical
assistant and front office position. Mt. Carmel Hospital will support
the hiring of a new physician.
The Ohio State University Foundation – $45,000 from the Charlotte R. Haller, John Charles Sharon, and Willson Children’s Center funds to support a demonstration project field-testing model for clinical social work training in community settings.
Immigrants/Refugees
Central Ohio Diabetes Association, Inc. – $63,600 from the Alice and Robert Estrich, Barbara J. Haddox, and Charlotte R. Haller funds to support outreach and education programs for the Hispanic community.
Columbus Area, Inc. – $35,000 from the Alice and Robert Estrich and Robert B. Hurst funds
to support the continuation of the Gateway to Wellness Services program
that provides outreach, assessment, and outpatient mental health
services to members of the Somali community in Columbus.
HIV/AIDS, Special Needs, and Substance Abuse
Columbus AIDS Task Force – $28,000 from the Pauline and Cletus J. Corbett and William Greenville Pace Medical Research funds to expand the resource librarian position to provide computer training, consultations, and resources for clients.
Columbus Area, Inc. – $15,000 from the Helen Sells Clarkson and Alice and Robert Estrich funds
to support the implementation of a residential therapeutic counseling
and support program for adult males recovering from substance abuse
that prepares them for independent living.
Homes and Hearts Foundation – $15,000 from the Henry E. Coyle Fund
to support the architectural modifications and purchase of durable
medical equipment that will allow disabled Franklin County residents to
remain in their own homes rather than reside in long-term care.
Native American Indian Center of Central Ohio – $25,000 from the Charles R. and Irene M. Mougey Fund
to support HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted disease (STD)
education and awareness in the central Ohio American Indian community.
Other
Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association, Inc., Central Ohio Chapter – $35,000 from the Edythe G. Alberty and Theodore J. and Thelma G. Tobbe funds to
support the Enhancing the Care of the Hospitalized Dementia Patient
Initiative that will provide crisis consultation, coordination of
respite services, and advocacy for patients and their families.
Impact Safety Programs – $20,000 from the Alice and Robert Estrich Fund
to provide a violence prevention program for residents of Amethyst, an
agency providing alcohol and drug treatment, supportive housing, and
intensive case management for homeless and low-income women and their
children.
Law Enforcement Foundation, Inc. – $11,400 from the Alice and Robert Estrich and Charlotte R. Haller funds to support a training program for law enforcement officers, aiding them in serving victims of domestic violence.
Johns Hopkins University, School of Hygiene and Public Health – $22,000 from the Stelios M. Stelson Fund
to provide scholarships to medical doctors enrolled in the Bloomberg
School of Public Health who plan to practice medicine in the public
health service of impoverished countries.
-30-
|