The Community Foundation of the Ozarks awarded five grants Wednesday to programs addressing mental health issues for seniors.
In total, the grants reached 40,000 dollars and were funded through donations to CFO.
United Way of the Ozarks, NAMI of Southwest Missouri and the SeniorAge Area Agency on Aging each received 10,000 dollars. Another 10,000 dollars was split up with 7,700 going to the Lost & Found Grief Center and 2,300 going to The Library Foundation.
The programs will provide access to resources like counseling, social events and community engagement for seniors.
Bridget Dierks, Vice President of Programs for CFO, says these grant awards were planned a year ago.
“A big part of the reason why we undertook this effort was because we saw significant issues with isolation through the Springfield Greene County Health Department’s Canary Measure.”
Dierks said the Canary Measure assesses all aspects of health in the community.
A volunteer committee chose the organizations that would receive the grant funding.