Jacks Fork Community Foundation

Oct. 20, 2021 — Because of its efforts to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations in Shannon County, the Jacks Fork Community Foundation has won a $10,000 challenge grant through the Coover Regional Vaccination Initiative. From July 26 to Sept. 20, the percentage of Shannon County residents ages 12 and up to receive at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine increased by 7.7%.

Regional affiliate foundations of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks opted in on behalf of a single county to participate in the program. The CFO tracked data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for each county to determine the winners.

The Jacks Fork Community Foundation partnered with the Good Samaritan Care Clinic in its efforts to contact every current clinic patient about COVID-19 vaccination availability. Patients were provided information about vaccines, including their efficacy, and given the opportunity to ask questions and schedule appointments. Clinic staff also assisted with vaccination clinics through the Shannon County Health Center and Howell County Health Department. GSCC’s medical director, Dr. Jon Roberts, served as Shannon County’s physician on site for multiple weekly vaccination clinics. Roberts also made personal visits to Shannon County businesses to meet with employees and answer questions about the importance of getting the vaccine.

The prize is an unrestricted grant, which the Jacks Fork Community Foundation can use for its own community grantmaking. The CFO announced the winners of the Coover Regional Vaccination Initiative during its annual Affiliate Appreciation Conference on Oct. 7.

The Coover Regional Vaccination Initiative was supported by the Louis L. and Julia Dorothy Coover Charitable Foundation, managed by Commerce Trust Company. The CFO and the Coover Charitable Foundation have partnered since 2002 to award more than $7 million through grantmaking programs, particularly targeted to rural Missouri. The Coover Charitable Foundation is also a key contributor to the CFO’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund.

“Congratulations to the Jacks Fork Community Foundation and the great community that it represents,” said Jill Reynolds, senior vice president at Commerce Trust. “We applaud the leadership of the foundation board members to make their community safer and take steps towards putting this pandemic behind us.”

The Carthage Community Foundation, Joplin Regional Community Foundation, Sarcoxie Community Foundation, Cassville Community Foundation, Monett Area Community Foundation, Marshfield Area Community Foundation, and Community Foundation of the Hermann Area also received challenge grants through the Coover Regional Vaccination Initiative for their efforts in their local communities. The program featured a total of $60,000 in challenge grants for winning affiliates.