On January 20, the Women's Fund of Smith County awarded three impact grants totaling $197,500 for 2022. They include CASA for Kids of East Texas - $50,000, Mentoring Alliance - $50,000, and Next Step Communities Solutions - $97,500. This will bring the cumulative amount of grants awarded since 2009 to $2,503,135, impacting 29 agencies and countless lives. Thank you Women's Fund members!
Together, we presented an award of $50,000.00 to CASA for Kids of East Texas for its Teen Foster Youth Project. CASA is uniquely positioned to address the unique needs of teenage kids who are aging out of foster care. Through the Teen Foster Youth Project, CASA will provide consistent and trusted support to these kids, as they make their way into adulthood and the world beyond the foster care system.
As the evening progressed, we invested together in the lives of children across our community by awarding $50,000.00 to the Mentoring Alliance. Increasingly, “Social Emotional Learning” or SEL, is becoming a critical tool for educators and childcare specialists. SEL helps children learn how to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve goals, feel and show empathy, and so much more. Funding from this grant will enable the organization to begin integrating SEL into its existing programs for children.
Next Step Community Solutions offers a wide spectrum of services including comprehensive counseling in local schools. The Women’s Fund of Smith County is proud to partner with Next Step in expanding its Suicide Prevention and Resilience programing with a grant of $97,500 to address the needs of younger students to change unhealthy norms, ultimately preventing suicide, bullying and substance abuse.
