Health Forward Awards $928,175 in Applicant Defined Grants

KANSAS CITY, MO – The Health Forward Foundation (Health Forward) recently approved $928,175 in applicant defined grants to support organizations who strive to eliminate barriers to quality health care and promote healthy lifestyles. Health Forward awarded the following grants:

$75,000 to Cabot Westside Health Center for its Mental Health Awareness and Treatment Program that addresses the barriers Cabot’s primarily poor, Hispanic patient population face in accessing mental health services.
$75,000 to Catholic Charities of Kansas City – St. Joseph, Inc. to provide access to health screenings and follow-up; real-time, multi-media health literacy education relevant to chronic conditions; referral assistance; and nurse/case management services to a minimum of 275 underserved, underinsured, and uninsured individuals who are users of ten designated emergency assistance sites in Jackson County, Kansas City, and Cass County, Missouri.
$75,000 to Thrive Allen County Inc for the Thrive Capacity Building and Outreach Initiative, an effort to create a sustainable organizational infrastructure for Thrive Allen County, and to expand health and wellness outreach to residents in the most impoverished, rural areas of Allen County.
$75,000 to the Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired for its Infant/Toddler Therapy Program, a comprehensive, individualized education and therapy program for blind or visually impaired infants from birth to age three and their families.
$75,000 to the Vision Research Foundation to purchase a cutting edge piece of equipment called the OCT/SLO Combined OCT and Confocal Scanning Ophthalmoscope CSO (SLO) System which will give the ophthalmologists an ‘inside’ look of the retina from all directions to provide patients with early diagnosis, research and treatment of ocular diseases.
$74,700 to Pathway to Hope, Inc. to add trained employees, provide for staff development and be used for the purchase of and monthly payments for a cell phone, an item that is extremely important, for it enables clients to contact an employee quickly.
$72,000 to the Jackson County Free Health Clinic to hire a part-time development officer, initial funds for a paid Executive Director and a stipend for the volunteer Patient Assistance Program Coordinator.
$50,000 to Jackson County CASA to strengthen the internal capacity of Jackson County CASA and position it to continue to increase the size and quality of its guardian ad litem services.
$50,000 to ArtsTech to continue its work with health coordinators and school nurses in the Kansas City, Missouri School District (KCMSD), Rodgers Health Center, and its collaborative partner, Storytellers, by distributing oral hygiene materials through interactive live presentations to 800 middle-school students.
$50,000 to Mercy & Truth Medical Missions to complete the installation and operation of two dental operatories at the clinic in Raytown, Missouri, by installing dental units, adding digital imaging and electronic medical records. The dental clinic will provide dental services for the underserved and uninsured residents in Jackson and surrounding counties.
$48,500 to Kansas City Hospice and Palliative Care, Inc. for an outreach and education project to assure that African Americans in our community understand issues related to end of life, and options for care.
$37,125 to the Roy James Rinehart Memorial Foundation to work in partnership with Oral Health Kansas to engage the services of an external public relations firm to identify the best marketing and communications strategies to implement a comprehensive, culturally sensitive oral health communications campaign.
$35,000 to the University of Missouri Kansas City, KCUR to fund a position for health care reporting. Regular health-related reports will air on The Walt Bodine Show, Up to Date, KC Currents, and spot news and features.
$30,000 to Kansas City Anti-Violence Project, the only organization in Missouri and Kansas solely dedicated to providing services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and hate crimes. The organization provides information, support, referrals, advocacy, emergency assistance and housing, and other services to LGBT victims of violence (including domestic violence, sexual assault, and hate crimes) within the Kansas City metropolitan area.
$25,000 to the Vietnamese American Council of Greater Kansas City (VAC-KC) to implement a model program which makes use of culturally appropriate use of key symbols with the Vietnamese culture, to raise awareness of the importance of one’s health in their lives and the benefits of prevention and care as an integral part of daily living.
$19,850 to K-State Research and Extension – Wyandotte County to establish a Nutrition Resource Center. The Resource Center will be a fully functioning demonstration kitchen and will feature a library of reference materials for use by the public.
In 2008, Health Forward will fund a total of $4 million in Applicant Defined Grants (ADG). Proposals are accepted and reviewed on a regular basis throughout the year. Organizations are allowed to submit one applicant-defined proposal per calendar year. The maximum amount that can be requested is $75,000.