Community Foundation of the Ozarks

Every Friday, we share the news of new groups and individuals choosing to make philanthropic gifts and investments in their community. You can read more about types of funds available at CFO here. Click here for a full list of non-profit Agency Partners. For more information on fund types and how to get involved, contact Winter Skelton at wskelton@cfozarks.org.

Carthage Crisis Center, Inc. Repair and Replacement Fund –This fund will support the Carthage Crisis Center’s physical needs. This fund is a component of the Carthage Community Foundation.

Crest Ridge Project Grad Fund – The Johnson County R-VII School District established this fund to support the Project Graduation programs.

Hope for Tomorrow Fund – The Polk County House of Hope established this fund to help with long-term funding for the social service agency. This is a component of the Bolivar Area Community Foundation.

Summit School Financial Aid Fund – The Summit School will use this fund to hold monies restricted to financial aid for students to attend the school.

More than 60 CFO affiliate presidents and board members attending today’s annual conference in Springfield were encouraged to think expansively about the leadership and resource development roles they can offer as anchors in their communities.

They shared stories of successful collaborations fostered through listening to their communities and convening the right people to accomplish shared goals. Greater Seymour Community Foundation founder and board member Ron Geidd recalled how the affiliate led a Seymour 2026 long-range planning process that uncovered a serious concern among residents that the frequently used train tracks through the center of town cut off access to the fire department when trains rolled through. That led to construction of a second fire station on the other side of the tracks to allay those fears.

A larger affiliate, the Joplin-based Community Foundation of Southwest Missouri, used a recent grant cycle for tornado recovery to encourage a number of groups to collaborate on one application to fund much-needed affordable housing, and that coalition received CFSWMO’s largest grant ever of $1.5 million.

CFO President Brian Fogle said it’s not easy work, nor does it promise quick results. But offering community foundations as “safe spaces” to convene multiple stakeholders on community issues will lead to more effective grantmaking, and produce stronger results to build new assets. (more…)

A young girl who lost a front tooth in an accident could only have it replaced with a “flapper,” a temporary dental implant that she had to remove to play clarinet in the school band. Her family’s Medicaid coverage wouldn’t cover a new permanent tooth.

What would that do for that girl’s self-esteem, Robert Marsh asked rhetorically as he accepted the Fordland Clinic’s $9,200 grant awarded this week from the Community Foundation of the Ozarks and Commerce Trust Company through the Louis L. and Julia Dorothy Coover Regional Grantmaking Program.

The Fordland Clinic was one of 14 recipients of this year’s Coover grants for efforts to fight regional poverty totaling $127,500.

One of the themes in this year’s applications was for dental assistance because Medicaid funding is very limited in that area.

“There are children losing teeth who didn’t have to lose them,” Marsh said.

The Ozarks Resource Group in Buffalo also received a $5,000 Coover grant for dental services focused on preventative hygiene and education.

“This program brings toothbrushing to the schools for some kids who have never had a toothbrush in their lives,” Cheryl Eversole said in accepting the group’s grant for its “Bright Smiles” dental program.

Other grant awards were made to programs focused on similar basic needs such as hunger and homelessness. Care to Learn chapters in Clever, Rogersville and Willard received funds for their young chapters’ efforts to supply weekend backpacks, shoes, clothing and hygiene items to students in their districts. Least of  These, a food pantry serving Christian County, also received a grant to partner with Care to Learn to serve areas of the county where chapters don’t exist. They’ll use the money for a “personal care initiative” that will provide hygiene products, toilet paper and other necessities not covered by food stamps.

The Kitchen, Inc., will use its $18,340 grant to extend its “One Door” homelessness prevention services into Christian County.

Christian County has seen an increase in homelessness during the economic downturn, particularly among families who have had to “double up” with other households and then find themselves out on the street, Coordinator Randy McCoy said.

“By tying it all together in a regional approach, kids don’t have to move school districts, so it’s less traumatic for them,” McCoy said.

CFO President Brian Fogle, who presented the grants with Commerce Trust Vice President Jill Reynolds, summed up the stories from the grant recipients as both heart-wrenching and uplifting.

“I hear these heart-wrenching stories you are telling and it can get one quite dejected,” Fogle said. “The other side of the coin is the great work you are doing every day in transforming lives. You’re making a difference in someone’s life every day.”