Fund Allocates $43 Million For Needy
Grants of $42,957,597to145 organizations that provide services and support through soup kitchens, homeless shelters, drug treatment centers, job training programs, and other compassionate programs have been announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Faith-based and community-based organizations will receive the federal funding.
The announcement consists of two sets of grants. The first totals $38 million; $6.9 million, the first installment of a three-year grant award, will go to 14 new intermediary organizations, including the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty in New York; Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma; the Governor’s Office for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in Ohio; and Mission West Virginia, Inc.; $31.1 million will be used for 31 second and third-year continuation awards.
The intermediaries will assist grass-root, faith and community-based organizations so they may increase their effectiveness, enhance their ability to provide social services and create collaborations to better serve those in need.
The second set of grants totals $4.9 million will be given to 100 organizations that work on priority issues such as at-risk youth, homelessness, healthy marriages and serving people in rural communities. Organizations include Hope Partnership for Education in Pennsylvania; Prevent Child Abuse in Minnesota; the Community Partnership for the Homeless in Texas; EnFamilia in Florida; and Lutheran Social Services of South Dakota.
Since the program’s inception three years ago, $99.5 million has been given to a total of 1,906 organizations through the Compassion Capital Fund, which is run by HHS’ Administration for Children and Families. One hundred and ninety-seven organizations have received grants and 1,709 grass-roots faith and community- based organizations have received sub-awards by Sept. 30, 2004.