By KWGS News
Tulsa, OK – George Kaiser Family Foundation (GKFF) today announced it will provide $5.8 million in grants to more than 80 Tulsa-area social service agencies, with 20 of the grants including matching challenges.
Almost $1.2 million will go toward substance abuse, mental health and crisis intervention; $1.3 million will support community health initiatives; $837,500 will support child and family welfare, senior services and youth development and training; and more than $2.5 million will benefit basic needs and other organizations.
"Many individuals and families in our community are struggling to obtain basic needs like food and shelter, do not have access to health care and are in need of other critical services," said Ken Levit, executive director of George Kaiser Family Foundation. "Organizations in Tulsa are working hard to help meet the needs of Tulsa's most vulnerable citizens. The foundation is pleased to present these Social Services Safety Net year-end grants to assist organizations as they serve more individuals and families throughout our community."
Agencies receiving funding include Camp Fire USA Green Country Council, Inc., Child Abuse Network, Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma, Emergency Infant Services, Family and Children's Services, Goodwill Industries, Mental Health Association in Tulsa, The Parent Child Center, DVIS, Incarcerated Women's Project Fund, Rebuilding Together Tulsa and Tulsa Project Woman.
GKFF worked with community partners and foundation colleagues across Tulsa over a period of several months to identify the most pressing social service needs in the region and to select various agencies that are effectively positioned to deploy these funds for maximum impact.
The results of that review include grants to the following organizations and many others like them:
Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma (CFBEO) is the largest private hunger-relief organization in Oklahoma, serving 450 partner programs in 24 counties of Eastern Oklahoma. They will receive a grant of $250,000 with a $100,000 challenge grant to help respond to the agency's reported food shortage and to support the Food for Kids backpack program. In addition to the food bank, GKFF provides support to 21 Tulsa agencies providing food, shelter and utilities assistance and clothing.
"We are experiencing a double-dip drop in donations. We are estimating a loss of as much as five million pounds of food which means we will not be able to provide 3.8 million meals to our partner programs unless we find other sources," said Eileen Bradshaw, incoming executive director of CFBEO. "This grant will help make up some of this loss and will ensure that our partner programs will not have to turn away families in search of food. In fact, if we meet our challenge grant, the money will allow us to purchase about 400,000 pounds of additional food. This will be a huge help in closing the current gap."
Emergency Infant Services (EIS) will receive a grant in the amount of $115,000. EIS provides basic needs such as formula, milk, food, diapers, medicine, clothing and cribs/car seats (by referral) to families who are in crisis or emergency situations, assisting more than 1,000 infants and toddlers from newborns up through age five each month.
"This grant will allow us to further meet the increasing needs so that children up to five years old will not continue to suffer from hunger, malnutrition or go without diapers," said Tom Taylor, executive director of Emergency Infant Services. "EIS has seen a 14 percent rise in need over the previous year. GKFF is helping EIS provide needed assistance to Tulsa's most vulnerable and tiniest victims of poverty and circumstance."
Family and Children's Services (F&CS) will receive $549,000 to continue providing mental health and crisis intervention services to children and adults. The F&CS network includes 11 facilities and more than 50 school and community partner locations throughout the greater Tulsa metro area. Eighty-nine thousand dollars of the grant will support the new Health Clinic partnership with Morton Comprehensive Health Service.
"This important collaboration will provide access to medical care for some of the most vulnerable people in our community - those who are being treated by F&CS for mental illness," said Gail Lapidus, executive director of F&CS. "Individuals with serious mental illness die 25 years earlier than the general population, and most die from treatable conditions. We believe collaborating with Morton provides great opportunity to extend and save lives."
The Incarcerated Women's Project Fund will receive $298,742. The donation will be used to fund the Helping Women Recover and Beyond Trauma intensive treatment programs at two of Oklahoma Department of Corrections female prisons. These programs recently scored "highly effective" in an independent audit conducted by the University of Cincinnati's Department of Criminal Justice and are known to be the first prison gender responsive programs to obtain this achievement.
"These evidenced-based programs are innovative, cater to gender needs and utilize principles of trauma-informed treatment to address women's psychological development, trauma and addiction with the goal of reducing the likelihood of recidivism," said Dr. Melanie Spector, health education, research and program development specialist with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. "The comprehensive treatment provides specific exercises that address topics women identify as triggers for relapse. Because of this grant, more female offenders will have access to the treatment they need to succeed when they reenter the community."
The $165,000 grant to Rebuilding Together Tulsa will fund home repairs in the Hawthorne (located near 36th and North Peoria) and Kendall-Whittier (located near First and Lewis) neighborhoods. Repairs to these homes will include new roofs, energy efficiency improvements, paint, wheelchair ramps, secure door locks or other needed repairs. The grant includes a $15,000 challenge grant.
"Rebuilding Together Tulsa is honored by the continued support of the George Kaiser Family Foundation," said Jennifer Barcus-Schafer, CEO of Rebuilding Together Tulsa. "Their investment in Rebuilding Together Tulsa to repair homes, revitalize neighborhoods and positively change lives will impact at least 30 Tulsa families living with limited resources."
In addition to the $5.8 million in health and human services grants, GKFF distributed over $1.7 million at the beginning of the school year through its Social Services Safety Net process to twenty-two early childhood education and other educational agencies, for a total year-end giving of more than $7.5 million related to the GKFF safety net initiative.
One of the recipients of the education grants was Child Care Resource Center, a program of Community Service Council, which received a $240,000 grant to support their services. The center promotes quality, affordable child care in the Tulsa Metropolitan Area working toward quality care for every child.
"George Kaiser Family Foundation's financial contributions allow us to provide ongoing, intensive support and coaching for early childhood programs to achieve high quality standards that help build a solid foundation for young children and their families to be successful in school and life," said Karen Smith, director of Child Care Resource Center.