Since 2008, the Fund for Women and Girls has been able to give $168,714 in grants to local nonprofit organizations in our community. With the power of collective giving, we are able to give more funds and help more women and girls throughout Central PA.

The Fund for Women and Girls 2018 Grantees

These grantees are nonprofit organizations that have programs that advance the lives of women and girls by providing opportunities to develop economic self-sufficiency, provide health and safety programs for women and girls, or promote the education of women and girls in the South Central PA counties of Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lebanon, and Perry, and the Dillsburg Area.

Brethren Housing Association

Grant Amount: $3,000
Project: Transitions Peer Support Group

Since 1989, BHA has provided transitional housing and supportive services for families experiencing homelessness. BHA has worked over the last two years to become a Trauma informed Organization. Grant funds will assist BHA in working with participants to break down barriers and stigmas around accessing mental health services and will work to begin a weekly peer support group led by a counselor specializing in trauma and PTSD. The focus of the group will be to teach skills to heal and cope with the trauma of homelessness and other traumas they may have experienced.

Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area

Grant Amount: $3,000
Project: Rental Assistance

Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area serves single women headed households, where the root cause of homelessness is family isolation and lack of resources available to the overwhelming number of women and children facing homelessness in our community. The Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area program is a long-term solution to family homelessness focusing on building a network of supportive relationships who offer tangible supports and social capital while providing intensive, holistic services to single women and their children in both Dauphin and Cumberland counties. Grant funds will work to increase capacity of women and children served while providing each a hand-up to achieving safe and sustainable housing, strong and resilient families all within a well-built network of supportive Neighboring Relationships offering a long-term solution to homelessness.

Carlisle CARES

Grant Amount: $1,500
Project: Family Emergency Shelter

Carlisle CARES’ Family Emergency Shelter program seeks to address the community need of a call to eradicate homelessness by coordinating emergency overnight shelter and services to women and children experiencing homelessness and seeking shelter in Cumberland County, 365 days a year. CARES staff work to ensure the safety and well-being of the women and children served by the Family Emergency Shelter program as they navigate their way to overcoming homelessness. Grant funds will work to assist the residents in overcoming their day to day challenges including helping to get them connected with other human services, obtain housing, and supporting them in whatever way they are able as they work toward independence.

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Harrisburg

Grant Amount: $1,500
Project: Lourdeshouse Maternity Home Program

Lourdeshouse is the only facility in South Central Pennsylvania that offers specialized, comprehensive maternity care and residential services to women in need. Women residing at Lourdeshouse are provided with three nutritional meals a day, hygiene items, linens, clothing, baby supplies, case management services, transportation to and from appointments, and access to free laundry facilities. The Program also provides access to medical care and counseling; housing, employment, and educational opportunities; and childbirth, parenting, and life skills classes. Grant funds will assist this program as it works to address the issues that led to the residents’ homelessness and provides needed supports.

Feel Your Boobies Foundation

Grant Amount: $3,000
Project: At-Risk & Minority Young Women Interviews & Focus Groups

Since 2012, the Foundation’s primary program is its College Outreach Program, which provides free breast health education materials and programming to nearly 200 college campuses nationwide each year. This program has reached thousands of young women and has resulted in testimonials from young women who found their lumps as a result of attending one of our campus programs. Awarded grant funds will assist the Feel You’re your Boobies Foundation as it looks to expand its education & outreach efforts by targeting at-risk & minority young women, specifically black women, through effective communications and messaging.

Healthy Steps Diaper Bank

Grant Amount: $2,500
Project: The Silent Crisis project

Healthy Steps Diaper Bank’s mission is to keep children clean, dry, and healthy. One out of three families struggle to buy diapers. Although Pennsylvania offers programs such as WIC and Food Stamps (SNAP), diapers cannot be obtained through either of these programs. Without a sufficient supply of diapers, parents are forced to keep their babies in a diaper longer than is healthy for the child or to even reuse diapers. Providing diapers to families in need and teaching proper diapering techniques reduces the risk of diaper rash, staph infections, and urinary tract infections. Grant funds will work to address these needs, resulting in healthier children, fewer doctor and ER visits, and parents that feel confident in providing a basic need.

Hope Within Ministries Inc

Grant Amount: $3,000
Project: Integrated Behavioral Health and Primary Care for Uninsured & Underinsured Women & Girls

Mental health needs are on the rise among both women and men, and Hope Within Ministries works to offer behavioral health care that is also informed about primary care services and treatments. Hope Within is well positioned to offer integrated care since it is comprised of a health care center and counseling program onsite, and both programs are staffed with highly qualified, trained professionals who are supported by a network of more than 80 medical and non-medical volunteers. Through this project, Hope Within aims to improve the mental and physical health of women and girls who are residents of Cumberland, Dauphin, and Lebanon Counties through the provision of integrated behavioral health and primary care services.

Lebanon Valley Volunteers In Medicine Clinic

Grant Amount: $1,000
Project: Medicine within its Free Health Clinic

Lebanon Valley Volunteers in Medicine (LVVIM) is a non-profit organization, founded in 2009 with the purpose of offering free primary healthcare services to uninsured, low-income adult residents (age 18 through 64) of Lebanon County. More than 50 % of all patients served by LVVIM are female. Volunteer physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, social workers and support staff primarily provide clinical services. LVVIM has for eight years, provided no cost primary medical care and prevention services, free prescription medications and no-cost diagnostic testing services to the underserved residents of Lebanon County. Grant funds will assist with LVVIM medications and daily testing equipment and supplies are provided to patients that cannot afford these items.

Mission of Mercy

Grant Amount: $1,000
Project: Medicine within the Medical and Dental Care for Uninsured and Underinsured Women project

Mission of Mercy’s free, compassionate care ensures that women are able to maintain their health, their livelihoods and their households. The women who visit our clinic are primarily the working poor, who pay taxes but who cannot afford the out of pocket costs of their healthcare. Approximately 70% suffer from one or more life-threatening chronic medical conditions, such as hypertension, diabetes, asthma or clinical depression. Grant funds will assist with medication needs as a result of adult primary care/internal medicine, acute care, non-emergency, dental care, diabetic education, physical therapy, patient advocacy, basic laboratory testing and triage, prescription medication.

The Salvation Army Harrisburg Capital City Region

Grant Amount: $1,500
Project: Career Development for Girls program

In May 2018, the Salvation Army Harrisburg Capital City Region were given the opportunity to provide a conference for all 7th and 8th girls in the Steelton-Highspire school district. This was made possible by partnering with the school, Soroptomist volunteers, business and community leaders to provide 5 concurrent sessions (26 sessions total) on topics that included self-esteem, budgeting, coping with stress, goal setting and healthy living. We have been invited to present this program again next year along with extended learning opportunities for girls within the district. In post-event surveys, 80% of the girls expressed the desire and need “for more.” Grant funds will enable us to respond to both this need and opportunity for Steelton-Highspire area girls in 2019.

The Sexual Assault Resource & Counseling Center of Lebanon & Schuylkill Counties

Grant Amount: $2,000
Project: Bridging Gaps in Services for Sexual Violence Survivors in Lebanon County project

In 2017, SARCC used a grant from the Fund for Women & Girls to plan and implement support and educational groups for female survivors of sexual violence. Through this grant, we were able to build staff capacity to provide specialized support groups, including yoga, healing arts, and mindfulness. The groups we planned were developed based on feedback from a client interest survey. During the course of planning our groups this year, we realized that there were several groups of women that we were not serving through this effort. Grant funds will work to address this need by expanding our work to meet the needs for more female survivors of sexual violence in the community and bring needed services directly to survivors who are otherwise unable to access them.

YWCA Carlisle

Grant Amount: $1,000
Project: FEE Free! (Female. Economic. Empowerment.)

In Cumberland County alone, 9.5% of women live below the poverty line. Currently, there are no organizations in Cumberland County uniquely providing financial literacy programs specifically targeted to women and girls on a regular and consistent basis. To this end, YWCA Carlisle has identified this as a great need that works within the agency’s mission pillars of Eliminating Racism and Empowering Women and Girls. YWCA Carlisle is creating a Female Economic Empowerment Program (FEE Free! FEE= Female Economic Empowerment) that will provide year-round financial skill building sets through workshops, presentations, activities, and investment clubs and eventually culminate with participants actively engaging in a social enterprise. Grant funds will assist this program as it begins efforts by serving middle school age girls, thus helping to create a base and foundation for a lifetime of healthy approaches to finances and economic stability.

Young Women’s Empowerment Academy

Grant Amount: $1,000
Project: Self-Empowerment Program

The Young Women’s Empowerment Academy, Inc. (YWEA) was created to motivate, train, and empower the next generation with the goal of fueling strong and confident women who can make educated decisions for their lives. We teach young women the importance of leading a life of service and influence, while obtaining the knowledge and skills to become educators and entrepreneurs. The Academy gives girls the opportunity to become global leaders and to raise awareness on topics that are important to their generation. Grant funds will assist in providing extensive assistance to girls ages 10+ who are at risk and underrepresented by retain these girls in our Academy and encourage each to pursue postsecondary degree programs in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Health-Related Occupations, and Entrepreneurial Professions.