Contributed Photo Volunteers with Shawano Matthew 25 assemble emergency kits for area residents experiencing homelessness and poverty.
Contributed Photo Dawn Dingeldein, a nurse with the Shawano Rural Health Initiative, administers a preventative health screening to Moises Gonzalez. A tablet provided by a SACF grant assists in communicating the results of screenings to Spanish-speaking patients.
The Shawano Area Community Foundation is accepting grant applications until Oct. 1 from eligible Shawano area charitable organizations.
Organizations interested in applying for grants up to $5,000 from the SACF’s Shawano Area Fund must be designated by the Internal Revenue Service to be public charities. This encompasses most charitable, scientific, social service, educational and religious organizations described in 501(c)3 of the tax code, as well as government agencies. Organizations that are not public charities may apply through a fiscal sponsor.
Grants support projects or programs in the areas of arts and culture, health, human services, community development, education and the environment. Priority will be given to proposals with clear goals and financial accountability, and for which a moderate amount of grant money can make a significant impact on an area of need.
Grant guidelines and an application form can be found online at www.ShawanoFoundation.org. For information or assistance, call Gail Bartz, board member with the Shawano Area Community Foundation, at 715-853-1428.
In 2014, grants totaling more than $20,000 were awarded to eight organizations. Below are summaries of two of the recipients.
Shawano Area Matthew 25
“Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me.” This scripture from the Gospel of Mathew serves as the foundation for the good deeds performed by the newly formed organization Shawano Area Mathew 25. The organization began in the winter of 2013 when a group of concerned people gathered one evening to watch a DVD about the growing poverty in America.
Touched by what they learned and by area statistics, including an estimated 198 homeless families, the group, along with people from area churches, began meeting monthly to talk about the need to help those experiencing homelessness and poverty in our area. Their vision is for our community to work together to help those in poverty and offer a structured opportunity to gain self-sufficiency and to have hope for a better future.
Muffy Culhane, SAM 25 president, said it was the expectation of another brutally cold winter that initiated the group’s request to the Shawano Area Community Foundation. They received a SACF grant for $5,000 to assemble and distribute emergency kits for those experiencing homelessness and poverty in the Shawano-Menominee community. The kits include a tote bag containing a space blanket, hand warmers, rain poncho, flashlight, small first-aid kit, toiletries and personal hygiene items. The kits will be distributed by area schools, law enforcement agencies, area food pantries and county social services.
“We are grateful Shawano Area Community Foundation has given us a great start to our mission,” Culhane said.
Culhane said SAM 25’s long-range goals include opening an emergency shelter and community clinic.
“We are working to ensure everyone in the Shawano area has a meal, a safe place to sleep, has access to affordable medical care, and is aware of resources available for those affected by poverty,” she said.
Rural Health Initiative
Long distances and longer hours make getting health care to farm families difficult. Add language barriers, and the job gets harder.
The Shawano Rural Health Initiative was created in 2009 to get care to remote locations. In 2014, Shawano County had seven dairy farms licensed for 1,000 or more animals, some working nearly around the clock and employing as many as 40 people. Hispanic workers with limited English fill many of these jobs, but taking translators along on farm visits would be prohibitively expensive for the nonprofit health care organization.
A $685 grant from the Shawano Area Community Foundation to purchase a tablet computer will help health care workers overcome language differences. They will be able to access Spanish-language health and safety videos on YouTube addressing such concerns as elevated glucose, energy drinks, mental health discussions and proper dental care.
By creating short video clips in Spanish, the outreach health coordinator has a way to communicate possible solutions when a concern is identified and a Spanish interpreter is not present. The total project cost was $4,745.
Learn more about the Shawano Rural Health Initiative at www.wiruralhealth.org.
SACF anniversary
This year the Shawano Area Community Foundation is celebrating its 25th anniversary. The SACF was established in 1990 by community volunteers to preserve and improve the quality of life in Shawano and the surrounding area. It is an affiliate of the Appleton-based Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, the second-largest community foundation in Wisconsin (www.cffoxvalley.org).
More information about the SACF is available online at www.ShawanoFoundation.org, by calling 715-524-6627, or by emailing info@shawanofoundation.org.
story created on Thursday 9/3/2015 at 10:31:53 am by Jody Otros
story modified on Friday 9/4/2015 at 4:05:07 pm by Lee Pulaski