On February 7, the Women's Fund of Smith County awarded four impact grants totaling $229,073 for 2019. They include Discovery Science Place - $35,000, East Texas Crisis Center - $46,750, Next Step Community Solutions - $97,323 and PATH - $50,000.. This will bring the cumulative amount of grants awarded since 2009 to $1,672,293, impacting 27 agencies and countless lives. Thank you Women's Fund members!
With this grant, Discovery Science Place will purchase a professionally produced planetarium system – “Discovery Dome.” This mobile planetarium unit will provide thousands of students in Smith County access to a unique interactive presentation addressing the areas of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fulfilling TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills) state standards on-site in their schools.
This program will expand the number of clients able to receive therapy by hiring a third LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor.) The addition will relieve the backlog and growing demand for counseling services to clients in crisis. The ultimate goal of the program is to provide a safe professional environment, empowering clients to make their own choices, work toward change, help them step away from abuse to develop healthy relationships, and rebuild their lives.
The addition of this new program – an evidence-based universal youth suicide prevention program – will harness the power of peer social networks to change unhealthy norms and cultures, ultimately preventing suicide, bullying and substance abuse at two Smith County public school campuses. This model is intended to build resilience, break codes of secrecy and silence, and inhibit the onset of suicidality.
Presently, PATH owns 52 homes that are identified as affordable and are marketed to low-income families. Families who are working to achieve financial goals and stability are ensured they will pay no more than 30% of their monthly income toward their housing expenses. By this grant, PATH seeks to add an additional Housing Case Manager to expand the program and work with more families, helping them achieve goals that enable them to stabilize and thrive. The vast majority of PATH’s Transitional Housing Program participants are single mothers with children, and many have gone on to become homeowners through Habitat for Humanity of Smith County.
