Spring 2009 Grant Recipients
Increase Access to Health Care and Transportation:
Advantage Behavioral Health Systems - $915.00
ABHS Operation Shuttle aims to provide Athens Transit bus passes to clients who otherwise would not be able to attend a clinic meeting, job interview, or training and employment. This simple service can make the difference between a client’s ability to achieve self-sufficiency and further deterioration of their emotional and economic situation. Last year, ABHS did not have funds to cover the transportation needs of clinic and Assertive Community Treatment clients. AACF’s grant will allow ABHS to double the number of Athens Transit passes it distributes to clinic clients and will provide a full year of passes for the Assertive Community Treatment clients.
Financial Literacy and Critical Needs:
The Ark’s Jubilee Fund - $3,000.00
The Ark is known for its emergency financial assistance in cases of job loss or unexpected necessary expenses. With the creation of the Jubilee Fund short-term loan program, the Ark has created a platform to respond to more than just a client’s immediate needs. With AACF’s grant, the Jubilee Fund will provide small, short-term loans to clients who meet strict criteria and demonstrate the ability to repay. These clients will receive sustained personalized training from a loan counselor. Once the loan is repaid, the Ark will then help a client set up an account at the Georgia Federal Credit Union. In this way, a client gains skills and access to main-stream financial tool. Moreover, resources for the next client are replenished through repayment of the loan.
Workforce Development and Job Creation:
Bread for Life - $2,500.00
Bread for Life is a technical and life-skills training program designed to help individuals start a career in the hospitality industry. AACF’s grant will help purchase commercial kitchen equipment that students will use to produce signature bread rolls to be sold to area caterers, restaurants, and hotels. After completing the 420 hour program, students may continue their education or find employment through Bread for Life’s affiliation with Athens Technical College. Bread for Life is an open enrollment program and is partnering with organizations like the Athens Justice Project.
Violence Prevention and Youth Development:
Camp Summer Spree - $2,550.00
Camp Summer Spree is a unique program for high-risk teens (ages 13-18) that follows campers over the course of high school through their graduation, working with them during the one-month camp and continuing to engage them in activities and service during the school year. AACF’s grant will help fund a two-day workshop teaching 30 Summer Spree campers and 5 staff members/volunteers a nonviolent communication methodology. Taught by Charles Alphin, former Director of Education and Training at The King Center in Atlanta, Nonviolent Communication skills are used by children and adults to help identify violence-prone situations and techniques to diffuse or remove one’s self from the situation. The second day of this workshop will be open to all social service staff from area agencies. Campers will then spend an additional week honing skills and making training videos which they will use to teach nonviolent communication workshops to middle school students the following year.
Arts and Youth Development:
Cedar Shoals High School Concert Choir - $2,000.00
The Cedar Shoals High School Concert Choir earned an invitation to attend a five-day residency at Carnegie Hall in New York City. With the help of AACF’s grant, these students will receive training from composer/director John Rutter. In addition to their own performances, students will attend two Broadway musicals as well as visit major historical/cultural sites in the city. Participants auditioned for a spot in the Concert Choir. The group is racially diverse, many students are from low-income households, and several students have special learning needs. Their hard work as artists and as fundraisers advances their own development as well as the cultural richness of our community.
Increase Access to Community Resources and Promote Nonprofit Collaboration:
Community Connection’s Information and Referral Helpline - $2,935.00
Community Connection is Athens’ umbrella organization that connects individuals to resources via the 2-1-1 Information and Referral Helpline (706-353-1313); interested citizens to volunteer opportunities via HandsOn Northeast Georgia; and organizations to resources- including each other- through the Non-Profit Development Alliance. Each year Community Connection provides referrals to over 70,000 people using their database with 2,400 local, state, and national programs. With demand on the rise, AACF’s grant will be used to help streamline the database to simplify searches and improve accuracy of referrals to clients.
Youth Development:
Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia - $2,550.00
Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia serves 372 girls from Clarke County. The week-long summer camp programs offer girls (ages 5-17) with the opportunity to develop life and leadership skills through day- or overnight- camps located throughout Georgia. Each camp has its own theme and incorporates the Girl Scout program of engaging activities that foster learning, individuation, and teamwork. AACF’s grant will make scholarships available to 40 girls who would otherwise been unable to afford the program. Demand for scholarships is increasing due to the economic recession.
Increase Access to Health Care and Workforce Development:
Mercy Health Center - $3,000.00
Mercy Health Center partners with over 400 volunteer dentists, physicians, nurses, pharmacists, interpreters, students and other volunteers to provide health services to over 2,600 uninsured, low-income patients in the Athens area. AACF’s grant will help Mercy expand its reach and empower at-risk community members through the Lay Health Promoter program. Lay Health Promoters are recruited through the clinic, local churches, and community centers. Participants enter a 40-hour course that teaches basic information about medical resources to more complicated issues such as detection of high blood pressure, breast cancer, and diabetes. In addition to the weekly class requirements, each Lay Health Promoter is encouraged to talk with others in their community about health problems and share information on a subject in which they have recently been trained. Lay Health Promoters receive a notebook of materials and multiple handouts as well as a stethoscope, thermometer, and blood pressure cuff for use in the community. Upon completing the program, Lay Health Promoters also receive a Certificate of Achievement. Training people from at-risk neighborhoods to become health advocates increases skills, spreads access to health information, and empowers graduates to continue their education.
Youth Development:
Athens YMCA - $1,000.00
Athens YMCA serves over 425 youth each week of Summer Day Camp offering swimming programs and sports camps. At least 100 participants apply and qualify for financial assistance. AACF’s grant will help defray costs for summer camp for low-income children from Clarke, Oconee, Madison, Oglethorpe, and Jackson counties.
Workforce and Youth Development:
Young Dawgs Program – $2,000.00
The Young Dawgs program, housed within UGA’s Office of Human Resources, collaborates with local schools and businesses to provide relevant work-based learning opportunities for high school students to better prepare them for post-secondary education and the 21st century workforce. Under the supervision of University site managers, students earn high school credits by attending their internship placements between 7.5 and 15 hours per week. During the summer, students work 20 hours per week. During the summer of 2009, Young Dawgs will serve 60 participants. By 2011, UGA will provide at least 260 internship sites for high school students. Young Dawgs goal is that every student who completes the 5-year program will graduate from high school.
Youth Literacy and Transportation:
YWCO’s Girls Club - $2,550.00
YWCO’s Girls Club provides affordable summer day camp for over 200 young girls (ages 5-14) from low to moderate income families. The six-week program focuses on recreational and educational activities that build self-esteem, teach good decision making, encourage educational attainment, and promote healthy lifestyles. Girls Club is unique it that it is only for girls, provides transportation, and remains affordable at a weekly fee of $25 which includes lunch. AACF’s grant will help purchase new books for the library and Reading Enrichment program as well as support the Club’s growing transportation needs. Transportation is a critical component of enabling girls to participate. Once they arrive, the Reading Enrichment program offers 10 hours of reading instruction targeted to girls who need extra support to improve their reading skills for the coming fall.