Strengthening Social Safety Nets in the Wake of COVID-19
Published July 8, 2020
As COVID-19 continues to impact the world at an increasingly distressing rate, we continue to navigate the short- and long-term road ahead. The pandemic has unleashed a unique and complicated set of challenges for organizations of all types – from nonprofits and government entities to local businesses and multinational corporations. Across the globe, and here in Central Texas, we have been required to rethink everyday life, the way we engage with one another, and how we, collectively, work to ensure the well-being of our community.
While this crisis has compounded the already great need in our community, it has also served as a catalyst for greater creativity, innovation, collaboration and commitment. Across the region, we are witnessing stories of nonprofit organizations illustrating ingenuity while simultaneously demonstrating resilience to bring hope to the communities they tirelessly serve each day.
The reality of the pandemic and ongoing assessment of its fallout, which we are only beginning to experience, allowed the Foundation to rethink our approach to funding. We recognized the need for local nonprofits to have flexibility in responding to the current needs of Central Texans and determined it was vital to convert our spring grants, where appropriate, to unrestricted, general operating support to ensure the stabilization of day-to-day operations. This also allows our nonprofit partners maximum flexibility to respond to the crisis most effectively. Now is the time to stand by partners and ensure they can continue to provide the resources and services our community so urgently needs.
In working closely with our grant partners, we heard an outpouring of need ranging from clinical and safety net support services to projects that seek to build community engagement and resilience. Through listening and learning, we continually strive to lift up the voices and experiences of those closest to our most vulnerable neighbors. And through this, we continue to advance our approach to meet the ever-evolving needs of our community. Today, we share the grant recipients of our spring grant cycle totaling $22,316,753 and celebrate their stories of resilience and commitment to Central Texas.
St. David’s Foundation’s spring grant recipients represent organizations serving some of our most vulnerable populations across our five-county region. Below, we invite you to learn more about these organizations and the vital work they provide to our community.
To learn more about upcoming grant cycles, please click here. For those looking for COVID-19 support, please visit the St. David’s Foundation COVID-19 Recovery Fund page for more information. Applications for Phase II recovery funding will open on July 20, 2020.
AIDS Services of Austin DBA Vivent Health: (multiple initiatives) $573,576 – Funding will assist Medical Social Work services to support HIV patients through ASA’s Moody Medical Clinic and the Jack Dansing Dental Clinic. Additionally, funding will support oral health care services, staffing, capacity building and patient navigation services.
Any Baby Can of Austin, Inc.: (multiple initiatives) $578,766 – Funding will support the Children’s Hearing Aid Texas (CHAT) program and the No Estás Solo program.
Austin Child Guidance Center (ACGC): $517,383 – Funding will support ACGC’s Building Child and Family Resilience Project, a comprehensive prevention and treatment program for children and families dealing with trauma and adversity.
Austin Clubhouse, Inc: $140,000 – Funding will support direct service and programming for adults with a mental health diagnosis living in affordable housing.
Austin Cops For Charities: $30,000 – Funding will be used to purchase portable air conditioners for families lacking A/C during the hot summer months.
Austin Groups for the Elderly (AGE) of Central Texas: $10,000 – Funding will support staffing for the organization’s Sustaining Care for Older Adults program.
Austin Recovery: $850,000 – Funding will provide clients with detox and residential treatment services for substance use disorders.
Bastrop County: $150,000 – Funding will support emerging leaders in rural communities focused on equity, diversity and inclusion at its core.
Bastrop County Cares: $100,000 – Funding will support alignment across coalition activities in Bastrop county to empower and build capacity to create systems change.
Combined Community Action Incorporated: $80,000 – Funding will provide increased services for homebound seniors receiving delivered meals.
CommuniCare Health Centers: (multiple initiatives) $1,169,543 – Funding will support cost of care for a defined number of uninsured patient visits and will support the Centers’ dental program.
Community Econsult Network, Inc: $495,897- Funding will support improving access to specialty care for residents in Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays and Williamson counties.
Community Health Centers of South Central Texas, Inc.: (multiple initiatives) $1,152,088 – Funding will support care provided to residents in Bastrop and Caldwell counties focused on population health and the enhancement of its healthcare delivery model. Additionally, funding will provide continued support of quality and affordable oral health services to uninsured adults .
Council on At-Risk Youth (CARY): $150,000 – Funding will support the PeaceRox Program at Webb Middle School in Austin ISD and at Manor Middle School in Manor ISD. The program is designed to reduce and prevent youth violence in order to close the pipeline to prison.
Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, Inc (ECHO): $268,176 – Funding will support the continuation of the Pay for Success Pilot at Caritas and Pay for Success startup hires at Integral Care and Caritas.
Family Independence Initiative (FII): $600,000 – Funding will invest in the initiatives of Central Texas’ hard-working, low-income families and accelerate their mobility toward the middle class.
Foundation Communities: (multiple initiatives) $2,175,100 – Funding will support capital and housing navigation costs for Laurel Creek, an affordable housing community opening in 2021, and will support wrap-around housing services for communities including Waterloo Terrace and Laurel Creek.
Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center: (multiple initiatives) $567,804 – Funding will support transitional housing for victims of family violence as well as shelter, advocacy, administrative and education services.
Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM): $195,250 – Funding will provide preventive and restorative dental care for Austin’s low-income working musicians.
Hope Medical Clinic: $22,500 – Funding will support chronic disease management for patients diagnosed with hypertension or diabetes.
Hospice Austin: $883,800 – Funding will support Christopher House, an inpatient facility.
Interagency Support Council of Eastern Williamson County, Inc.: $135,000 – Funding will provide financial support for the rural school-based mental health program.
KLRU, Austin PBS: $1,500,000 – Funding will support KLRU as it begins construction of the Austin Media Center at ACC Highland, leveraging media as a strategic tool for community good.
Lone Star Circle of Care: (multiple initiatives) $2,969,517- Funding will support its Integrated Health Home, providing patient-centered care and enhanced clinical infrastructure. Additionally, funding will support increased access to affordable dental services for low-income and uninsured residents in Central Texas.
Manos de Cristo: $268,093 – Funding will support providers with supplies and administrative services during regular and extended hours.
Mission Capital: $300,000 – Funding will expand services related to convening and leading approaches for children and families in Central Texas.
Northwest Austin Universal Health Clinic: $26,500 – Funding will support diagnostic testing for primary care patients in Austin’s Asian American community.
People’s Community Clinic: (multiple initiatives) $2,925,190 – Funding will support its Enhanced Community Health Through Value-Based Strategies project, the Tandem Teen Prenatal & Parenting Program, and will support the implementation of People’s integrated dental program.
Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas: $273,200 – Funding will support renovations to improve the overall patient experience at the new Central Austin location.
Sacred Heart Community Clinic, Inc: (multiple initiatives) $13,750 – Funding will be used to subsidize the purchase of prescription medications for its onsite pharmacy and to support the purchase of dental supplies.
Samaritan Health Ministries: (multiple initiatives) $100,625 – Funding will provide primary care and behavioral health services to uninsured clients in Travis and Williamson counties. Additionally, funding will support the expansion of dental support and staffing services.
Smithville Community Clinic: $94,059 – Funding will support community well-being and resilience through expanded staffing and education programs.
Spirit Reins: $145,000 – Funding will support its Reining in Trauma program, which provides trauma-informed mental health services.
Sustainable Food Center: $250,000 – Funding will support its Building Capacity for Change in the Food System project, which aims to at address barriers to healthy food access.
Texas Health Institute: $35,000 – Funding will support the development of an interactive report, which will detail data-driven issues facing the primary care and health system in Texas.
Texas Scottish Rite Hospital: $100,000 – Funds will underwrite a portion of costs associated with specialized prosthetic devices for children.
The SAFE Alliance: $1,313,765 – Funding will support Strengthening the Resiliency & Well-Being of Abuse Survivors, a project which offers direct services and abuse prevention programming.
The University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing: $100,000 – Funding will support community health engagement in Bastrop, Caldwell and Eastern Travis counties through media and business partnerships.
United Way For Greater Austin: (multiple initiatives) $944,421 – Funding will contribute to the All Together ATX Fund, which provides resources for the nonprofit community disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Additionally, funding will support programs including Success By 6 Coalition, Family Connects and Emerging Young Men of Color (EYMC2).
Volunteer Healthcare Clinic: $112,750 – Funding will support comprehensive medical services and operations.