Owensboro Health Announces Recipients of 2023 Community Health Investments Grant Program

Owensboro Health announced its FY 2023 Community Health Investments Grant Program recipients at Owensboro Health Regional Hospital on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

The Community Health Investments Grants provide in-kind and financial support for health, human services and arts projects and programming throughout the region. Funded projects and agencies being supported span a wide array of regional needs, from children in local school districts to aging adults and senior services.

The grants are targeted at a number of community-specific identified health needs in addition to the health system’s four priority focus areas: Tobacco and Related Diseases; Older Adults and Aging; Arts in Healing; and Children and School Health. This year’s investments will support 25 projects throughout the region for a total of $524,703.55. This year’s amount means Owensboro Health has invested more than $10 million in area agencies since 2011.

Mark Marsh, Owensboro Health’s President and CEO, said these grants are a key element to Owensboro Health fulfilling its mission to heal the sick and to improve the health of the communities we serve.

“These direct community investments allow us to reach beyond healthcare and impact other areas that are key determinants to the health of our patients and community,” Marsh said. “By working together with these community partners, we can accomplish even bigger goals to improve the health of our region. These partnerships are vital for a healthy and vibrant community.”

Agencies and projects funded for the upcoming fiscal year are listed below.

Aubrey's Song Foundation for Eating Disorders

Aubrey's Song 3.0: Education, Outreach & Advocacy

Project will educate the community at large about the risks and treatment of eating disorders. Local providers will be educated about eating disorders and their diagnosis indicators, and services will be further expanded to better serve the needs of those with eating disorders, along with their families.

Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum

Bluegrass Music Academy: Music with a Mission

The Bluegrass Music Academy will allow for the educational programming of the museum to be housed under the same umbrella, which will be overseen by the Education Director.

Care Net Owensboro

Continuation and Expansion of STI Clinic

The continuation and expansion of the STI Clinic will allow for better access to care for patients in the clinic being tested. This organization already provides testing for chlamydia and gonorrhea and will add the testing of trichomoniasis to the panel as well.

CASA of Ohio Valley

Hope Needs a Helping Hand

Organization will work to spread awareness of the potential impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) to the Daviess and McLean County communities. An event will also be held in collaboration with the H. L. Neblett Center to provide awareness and education around ACEs and the impact of mental health and substance use for attendees.

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Owensboro

2023 Directories for Local Services

Directories will provide compact, county-based service resource directories so individuals and agencies can readily find locally available options to address emergency situations, social determinants of health, and general health and wellness.

Community Dental Clinic

Expanding Access to Oral Healthcare Project

Target population is the uninsured and Medicaid patients in our area who need routine and emergent dental care through their Charity Care Fund.

Faithful Friends Kentucky 

Music and Memory

Music and Memory is a national program that helps individuals with a wide range of cognitive and physical conditions to engage with the world, ease pain, and reclaim their humanity through the use of personalized music. Funding will provide the start up costs for two pilot sites.

Girls Inc. of Owensboro Daviess Co.

Healthy Girl Summer and Beyond

Funding will provide support for the summer programming efforts of this organization in 2023.

Grayson County Health Department

GCHD Breastfeeding Support Program

This program will allow for breastfeeding mothers in Grayson County to work with lactation counselors to have breastfeeding consults free of charge.

Green River District Health Department

Daviess County Access Project -DC-CAP

Prescription assistance and access to care program reaching at risk vulnerable populations. Goal is to provide at least $3.5 million dollars in donated prescriptions to our local community.

Greenville Elementary School

One Body One Mind

Program includes school/community mental health speaker and author Julia Cook, indoor and outdoor calming corners/sensory regulation strategies for students, and items for a staff wellness room.

Hospice & Palliative Care of Western Kentucky

Helping Our Community Thrive Following The Pandemic

Funding included for Camp Erin and both palliative care and bereavement educational materials for medical professionals and other community members.

Junior Achievement of West Kentucky, Inc.

JA Pathways toward Career and Life Success for K-12 Youth

Investment targeting youth in 11 counties in the highest free and reduced lunch classrooms, providing students with the knowledge, skills, and tools to increase understanding of importance of improving their economic well-being.

New Beginnings Sexual Assault Support Services

An Introduction to the Integration of Structural Dissociation

Speaker is trained in complex trauma so practitioners in attendance can develop and promote comprehensive, clinically effective, and empirically based resources and responses to trauma and dissociation using EMDR techniques.

Opportunity Center of Owensboro

No Limits!

Funding for equipment for Pinocchio's Deli startup, which will be run by clients at the Opportunity Center. Menu planning, food prep, supply ordering, budgeting, customer service, and industry and work specific skills will be taught to clients working at the deli.

Owensboro Symphony 

Music on Call

Music On Call brings meaningful, musical experiences directly to participants in their environment through a variety of community partnerships. Funds will cover artistic expenses, technical expenses, travel expenses, and staging and property expenses.

Patrick Rudd Project Inc.

Mission: Share the Load

Project will deliver mental health services to Hopkins County First Responder agencies to address the barriers to access and the stigma attached to mental health and wellness. Licensed Mental Health Professionals (MHPs) will deliver this training to 410 Hopkins County first responders, bringing awareness to the importance of mental health, on-the-job stressors, PTSD and trauma (as well as how the body responds to both), and also sharing resources available to them.

RiverPark Center

Arts Teach Kids Summer Camp Series

Camp series will provide arts enrichment programming that utilizes Social - Emotional Learning (SEL) to support the mental health of area youth. Referrals for camps will be accepted for at - risk youth through partner agencies. Partial and full scholarships are available for students in need.

Salvation (The) Army

Social Services Hub

Remodel would allow for vast expansion of food pantry space and additional space for case management meetings, on-site vocational and personal counseling, and life skills classes.

Senior Community Center of Owensboro-Daviess County

Weekend Accessible and Ready Meals (WARM) Program

Provision of nutritious meals on the weekends to vulnerable seniors in Daviess County. Both the physical strength and mental wellness of these seniors will be measured and recorded during the course of the grant year.

SOS International

Hospital Recycling Partnership Program

Funding supports continued Hospital Recycling Partnership to help support the expenses related to collection and redistribution of surplus medical supplies. SOS was a key partner in addressing needs presented by COVID - 19 in Kentucky.

Southwest Kentucky Kids on the Block

30 Educational Puppetry Performances

Educational puppetry programs will address priority health areas at public elementary schools in all eleven counties in the Owensboro Health targeted primary service area.

Spencer County 4-H Association

Summer Community Adventures

Program will primarily serve Latino youth in Spencer County to enrich youth development though activities to improve physical, emotional, and social health.

Theatre Workshop of Owensboro

Spotlight on Kids

Year round opportunities for children of all ages and abilities will be provided through theatrical arts. Youth Season performances, TWO in the Schools, drama camps and clubs, and The Penguin Project will allow for the involvement of youth in a variety of ways.

Tri-State Food Bank, Inc.

Senior Grocery Program

This project will improve the health of low-income elderly populations by supplementing their diets with nutritious foods. Seniors 60 and above that are eligible for local senior feeding programs are eligible for this program.