It look's like you don't have Adobe Flash Player installed. Get it now.
Several local non-profit agencies are starting to put thousands of dollars to work today, 24 hours after receiving grants through a project spearheaded by the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. KSMU’s Jennifer Moore reports.
The Community Response Grant Initiative brought in over $739,000. It was launched last October after a report concluded that nonprofit organizations addressing hunger, child abuse and health care were struggling because of the economy and high unemployment rates.
CFO and four other community partners raised $325,000 and challenged ten non-profit organizations to match it. Those organizations not only raised the money two months early, but were also able to exceed the projected goal by more than $189,000.
Francine Pratt is the new executive director of Isabel’s House, a crisis center for children whose homes are unsafe due to abuse or neglect. Isabel’s House was one of the organizations awarded money this week. Pratt says the money will go toward hiring much-needed staff.
“We’re open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and so it’s important that we have enough staff with the right ratio of children so they can receive proper care and attention,” Pratt said.
CFO says all the organizations that received grant money from the Community Response Grant have reported seeing a major increase in the number of people seeking their help.
Each group received between $25,000 and $40,000.
The organizations funding the initial $325,000 were: The Community Foundation of the Ozarks, The Musgrave Foundation ,The Roy W. Slusher Foundation, The Turner Family Fund, and the Thomas J. Carlson Fund.
For KSMU News, I’m Jennifer Moore.
(KSMU Reporters Justin Lux and Royal Yates contributed to this report).
