United Way receives funding

More help is available for local non-profit organizations.

United Way of Jay County announced this week that it has been approved for $125,000 in COVID-19 Economic Relief Initiative Grant funds through a partnership between Lilly Endowment and Indiana United Ways.

“The United Way of Jay County has been a coordinator of our community’s response to meet human needs for decades,” said chair of the United Way of Jay County board Traci Gross in a press release. “Even before this crisis, we knew that many families in Jay County were not able to make ends meet — despite working. Thanks to generous support from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., we are now more strongly positioned to help our community’s nonprofits deal with the immediate and long-term impacts of COVID-19.”

The COVID-19 Economic Relief Initiative Grant funding is to be used to meet needs related to the coronavirus pandemic.

The grants are open to non-profits and other charitable organizations. Applications are available at unitedwayjaycounty.org or by contacting United Way of Jay County executive director Jane Ann Runyon at [email protected] or (260) 726-7010.

The brief application form requires organizations to explain what they will be doing with the funds, how many individuals are expected to be helped and how COVID-19 has impacted their budget.

The deadline to apply for the first round of local grants is July 17. Grant awards will be announced by Aug. 17.

Priority will be given to child care providers and non-profits that provide help with food, rent, utilities, daycare, summer camps and technology support. Non-profits can also seek funding for supplies needed during the pandemic.

“Part of it will be for immediate needs, although we feel like we’ve met a lot of the immediate needs from COVID,” said Runyon. “Between the foundation and United Way we fell like we’ve kept up pretty good.”

United Way of Jay County, teaming with Second Harvest Food Bank, has been holding weekly food tailgate events through most of the pandemic. Those are expected to continue through this month.

The Portland Foundation in March announced $20,000 in grant funding to local food banks, Jay School Corporation for mobile wi-fi hotspots, LifeStream Services for meals and supplies, IU Health Jay and A Better Life – Brianna’s Hope.

Other United Way initiatives have included providing Diapers for Pregnancy Care Center, a hand-washing station at John Jay Center for Learning and wi-fi hotspots for schools. it has distributed funds to local food banks, Jayland Emergency Fund and Jay Community Center.

“Now we’ll see what those needs are again,” said Runyon. “I know the food pantries have been busier than busy, and I know what the tailgates have been like.

“With this grant, we will make sure all those kind of things stay funded, and then we’ll start looking long-term.”

After handling immediate needs with the first round of grants, United Way of Jay County will then look toward the long term. The organization has until March 31 to distribute the entirety of the $125,000 it received from Lilly.

“None of us really know at this point what we are going to need,” said Runyon. “A lot of it remains to be seen what the needs really are.

“Our role is to provide all the support we can for the other not-for-profits. We fund the organizations and the programs that help people. If we can take this Lilly money and support these programs that are so needed, that’s what we’ll do.”

All United Way groups in Indiana were eligible for the COVID-19 Economic Relief Initiative Grant funds, with funding amounts from Lilly determined by population.