Mat-Su Health Foundation coronavirus prevention and response grants exceed $1 million

The Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) recently made 13 additional grant awards totaling $380,174 to local nonprofit service providers for coronavirus (COVID-19) prevention and response. This is in addition to 20 previously awarded grants awarded under the Coronavirus Prevention and Response (CPR) grant program launched by the foundation in March. The total awarded in CPR grants is now $1,118,402.

The new grantees to receive funding under the CPR program include the following:

Alaska Coalition for Veterans & Military Families: $12,065 to provide technology their clients need to continue accessing behavioral health services; Alaska Pacific University: $50,000 to expand the Alaska Tilth program by purchasing produce from Mat-Su farmers at fair market rate and distributing it to local hunger-focused organizations in need; Cook Inlet Tribal Council, Inc. (CITC): $50,000 to support the CITC Emergency Assistance Program for Mat-Su Residents which will provide financial assistance to participants to meet immediate emergency needs and support mobile case management; Faith Bible Fellowship Church of Big Lake: $15,000 to support weekly food distribution to those in need; Good Shepherd Lutheran Church: $20,000 to supplement its kitchen ministry’s food budget, pay wages for the kitchen manager and purchase two reach-in freezers; Hope Community Resources Inc.: $10,000 to assist with the expenses incurred for supplying Hope-assisted living homes in the Mat-Su Valley with PPE and technology for remote connectivity.

Kabayan Incorporated: $5,000 to make cloth face masks; Mat-Su Services for Children & Adults, Inc.: $50,000 to cover agency expenses incurred in the early stages of the pandemic; Mat Su Youth Housing: $50,000 to support procedures and resources for COVID-19 response services for homeless youth; Palmer Senior Citizens Center, Inc: $50,000 to support a coordinated effort to supply a biweekly food box to seniors (age 50 and above) and physically disabled persons in need, as well as medication delivery; Talkeetna Community Radio Inc: $6,320 to support informing residents of the upper Susitna Valley about COVID-19’s community impacts and how to prevent the virus from spreading; United Methodist Church Alaska: $21,789 to provide families in Willow and Houston basic food and personal care items, as well as improve cleanliness and safety at the pantry; Wasilla Youth Soccer Association: $40,000 to support the sustainability of programming to provide services during and after COVID-19 restrictions.

Information courtesy of the Mat-Su Health Foundation.