PARKERSBURG — The Sisters Health Foundation has awarded grants to 43 Mid-Ohio Valley nonprofit organizations in support of its vision of “healthy people in healthy communities”.
At its most recent meeting, the Board of Directors approved a total of $542,226.
“This grant cycle, it has been great supporting a variety of organizations that connect food systems to our health systems through FARMacy programs and related product prescription programs,” said SHF Executive Director Renee Steffen. “These connections are a win-win situation for everyone involved, because we know that food insecurity impacts health in a variety of ways.”
The Sisters Health Foundation promotes healthy, sustainable communities by providing resources, building collaborative relationships, and supporting initiatives that impact the people of the Mid-Ohio Valley. Since 1996, SHF has awarded more than $20 million in grants.
The foundation serves 11 counties in West Virginia’s Mid-Ohio Valley and southeastern Ohio: Calhoun, Jackson, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Tyler, Wirt, and Wood counties in West Virginia; Athens, Meigs, and Washington counties in Ohio. For more information on grantmaking and eligibility requirements, visit the website www.sistershealthfdn.org.
Sixteen organizations that provide direct services, such as food and emergency relief, received a total of $51,000 from the Basic Needs/Direct Services Grant Program.
* Adams House Ministries; Middlebourne: $5,000 for fresh produce vouchers for Tyler County residents.
* Beechwood Presbyterian Church; Parkersburg: $1,700 for fresh food for their emergency relief program.
* Alliance Against Child Hunger; Columbus: $3,000 for ready-to-eat meals and fresh produce for children in Meigs County during the summer and after school in the fall.
* Good Shepherd Episcopal Church; Parkersburg: $4,700 to purchase food for homeless people.
* Grand Marietta Community Pantry; Marietta: $4,000 to buy food, especially meat, dairy and products for their pantry.
* Central Ohio Lutheran Social Services; Worthington, Ohio: $3,500 for non-perishable food and fresh produce to support their mobile food pantries in Athens and Meigs counties.
* Meigs County Farmer’s Market; Pomeroy: $700 for items to set up the donation station at the Farmers Market.
* Ohio University Diabetes Institute; Athens, Ohio: $900 to support transportation for Meigs County youth to a three-day diabetes day camp on the Ohio University campus.
* Parents and Friends of the Hearing Impaired Inc.; Marietta: $3,000 to purchase or repair hearing aids for low-income deaf and hard of hearing people residing in the Mid-Ohio Valley.
* Parkersburg Urban Ministries; Parkersburg: $5,000 to help residents of Wood County pay for utilities.
* Straight Path for Washington County; Marietta: $3,000 for fresh local produce for Washington County Youth and Family Farmer’s Market events.
* Central Ohio Ronald McDonald House Charities; Columbus: $2,000 to supplement the cost of homestays for Mid-Ohio Valley residents while their children are in the hospital.
* The Betsey Mills Company; Marietta: $4,500 to purchase new mattresses and box springs for club residents.
* Washington County Hope Harvest; Marietta: $4,500 for healthy lean protein to distribute to food pantries and food sites across Washington County.
* Wood County Schools; Parkersburg: $3,000 to cover the cost of eye exams for students at Emerson Elementary.
* Parkersburg Zion Baptist Church; Parkersburg: $2,500 to purchase backpacks and essentials for people experiencing homelessness.
Twenty-seven organizations received support totaling $491,226 for their efforts to meet the health needs of their communities in the priority areas of healthy eating and active living; Prosperous neighborhoods; and Mental Health and Addictions.
Healthy Eating and Active Living Priority Area
* Boys and Girls Club of Pleasants County; St. Marys: $20,000 to upgrade and improve the cafeteria and classroom where club members eat meals and participate in projects.
* Boys and Girls Club of Washington County; Marietta: $16,000 to support the Triple Play program as well as garden upgrades to improve safety and add more learning components.
* Calhoun Family Resource Network; Grantsville: $5,000 to support story-gathering, training and advocacy for the right to food in Calhoun County.
* Community food initiatives; Athens, Ohio: $18,100 for capacity building support to help their organization sustainably scale its services.
* Memorial Health System; Marietta: $19,850 to support the FARMacy program in Tyler County in which patients receive 15 weeks of fresh, locally grown produce and education on healthy lifestyle habits.
* Mountaineer food bank; Gassaway, W.Va.: $18,000 to support organizational culture enhancement and improve staff skills, performance, and commitment to the food bank as a whole.
* Rural action; The Plains, Ohio: $25,000 to support their Product Prescription Project which partners with health clinics to distribute healthy local foods and healthy pantry staples to low-income families in the Mid- Ohio Valley.
* Washington-Morgan Community Action; Marietta: $4,500 to support their summer program which provides hot, nutritious meals to children in New Matamoras, Beverly, Lower Salem and Lowell.
* County of Wild, Wonderful and Healthy Pleasants; Friendly: $9,900 to support the purchase of equipment, kitchen utensils and fresh produce for weekly product prescriptions for participants.
* WVU Extension Service – Family Nutrition Program, Wood County; Parkersburg: $4,500 to support the purchase of produce and supplies for pop-up children’s farmers markets.
* WVU-Roane County Expansion; Spencer: $4,500 To support the purchase of gardening supplies for Geary Elementary Middle School in Roane County.
Dynamic neighborhoods
Priority area
* American Friends Service Committee; Milton, W.Va.: $15,000 to support policy advocacy work at the legislative and administrative level, including expanding child nutrition programs, restorative justice in schools, and ending restrictions on eligibility for SNAP.
* Birth Circle; Athens, Ohio: $4,000 for capacity building support for their relocation.
* Boys and Girls Club of Parkersburg; Parkersburg: $14,650 to support the cleaning and restoration of the club’s outdoor spaces as well as the revitalization of their discovery garden.
* MOV Children’s Museum; Parkersburg: $20,265.50 to support the Projection Pounce exhibit which explores early childhood motor skills and social connections.
* Mid-Ohio Valley Circles Campaign; Parkersburg: $36,000 for multi-year operating support to help families in their efforts to rise out of poverty.
* Latrobe Street Mission; Parkersburg: $5,000 to help purchase a cold room.
* Marietta/Belpre Health Department; Marietta: $4,000 to support the purchase of portable medical equipment used to provide reproductive health services to women.
* Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine; Athens, Ohio: $60,000 for multi-year financial support to provide uninsured/underinsured patients with labs, diagnostic screenings, diabetes and chronic disease management supplies, transportation assistance, medications and specialist references.
* O’Neill Senior Center; Marietta: $15,000 to help replace their telephone system to more effectively provide services to seniors in the Mid-Ohio Valley.
* The Mid-Ohio Valley Arc; Parkersburg: $44,210.50 to support the purchase and installation of an ADA elevator to provide access to the second floor.
* Washington County Career Center; Marietta: $25,000 to support the purchase of the Surgical Model Bundle Cadaver syndaver for their medical programs.
Mental Health and Addiction
Priority area
* Home of the Mid-Ohio Valley Fellowship; Parkersburg: $50,000 for multi-year operational support for Covid agency expenses.
* Ohio University Survivor Advocacy Program; Athens, Ohio: $3,750 to support the cost of EMDR training for Ohio University staff to provide trauma-focused therapy to student survivors at the university.
* OhioHealth O’Bleness Hospital; Athens, Ohio: $25,000 to support the hiring of a full-time youth bereavement counselor serving Athens County and contingent counties.
* Washington County Homeless Project; Marietta: $20,000 to help fund security and AmeriCorps personnel during their winter operation as well as food for their summer diet.
* Women for Recovery; Athens, Ohio: $4,000 to support residents in a sober living environment with healthy eating habits and a sense of community.
The due date for applications in the mental health and addictions priority areas; prosperous neighborhoods; and Healthy Eating, Active Living is July 13, 2022. By midnight of this date, submit a complete application for the Basic Needs/Direct Services Grants Program or a letter of request for the Responsive Grants Program.
Nonprofits are encouraged to contact Sr. Molly Bauer, Senior Program Officer, at 304-424-6080 or mbauer@sistershealthfdn.org to inquire about whether their grant application may be suitable for the Basic Needs Grant Program. /direct services. Application letters for the Responsive Grants Program can be submitted online at www.sistershealthfdn.org without scheduling a phone conversation beforehand.
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