HANCOCK COUNTY – Leaders are considering proposals addressing childcare, homeless shelters and a shared space for nonprofits as they determine how to allocate nearly $2 million in pandemic relief funds.
The requests stem from the Hancock County Community Foundation’s assistance with the Hancock County Commissioners’ decision-making process for dispersing money from the American Rescue Plan to nonprofit organizations. The county received about $15 million from the federal initiative meant to help governments and their constituents in the wake of COVID-19. So far the commissioners have earmarked $3 million for county nonprofit organizations, $6 million for a wastewater infrastructure project and $5 million toward mental health initiatives.
In August, the commissioners approved just over $1 million of the $3 million for nonprofits to over 20 organizations for projects small to mid-range in scale. That leaves almost $2 million for initiatives deemed transformational opportunities by the community foundation and commissioners.
Four applicants pursuing those transformational opportunities gave presentations to the county commissioners this week. They include Realife Church, seeking over $1.5 million to expand its STEAM Academy; Evangel Church, seeking over $1.2 million for the construction of a homeless shelter; Mt. Comfort Church, seeking nearly $250,000 to renovate a building into an emergency shelter; and Meals on Wheels of Hancock County, seeking over $1.2 million for a shared space for local nonprofit organizations.
The requests total over $4.2 million, exceeding the nearly $2 million available, giving the commissioners plenty to think about as they prepare to assign the funds.
Realife STEAM Academy
The STEAM Academy is a weekday childcare ministry for children 6 weeks through pre-K at Realife Church west of Greenfield. It opened in August and currently has an enrollment of 73 with 27 on the waiting list. The academy’s Christian curriculum includes kindergarten readiness and STEAM – science, technology, engineering, arts and math.
Realife STEAM Academy is requesting over $1.5 million from the county’s American Rescue Plan funds for an expansion to open nearly 200 new childcare/preschool seats, hire 10 new employees and achieve a Paths to Quality Level 4 certification within a year.
Betsy Greene, director of Realife STEAM Academy, said she and her colleagues heard from many in the community that there is a need for high-quality childcare.
“Parents need work, children need cared for and options for care in this area were not enough,” Greene said. “…Hancock County is a desert area in terms of high-quality childcare. Realife STEAM Academy is conveniently located, easily accessible to parents.”
Greene said she has over 18 years of experience teaching middle school and 10 years teaching preschool. She has a master’s degree in school administration and supervision and a bachelor’s degree in elementary education.
During her presentation, Greene discussed success stories of Realife STEAM Academy students, touted the ministry’s work environment and pointed to the demand for workers with STEAM backgrounds. She said the funding would allow for the renovation of over 20,000 square feet in the church, creating eight more classrooms, some STEAM labs and an interactive indoor play space. Greene added the academy would be able to work with an amount less than the full request as well.
Safe Haven
Evangel Church is requesting over $1.2 million to build a 6,000-square-foot homeless shelter with a capacity of 60 or more. It would also serve as an emergency shelter that could house the homeless for periods of seven, 30, 60 or 90 days. Called Safe Haven, the facility could serve as a disaster shelter as well.
The Rev. Jody Ballenger of Evangel Church pointed to Greenfield-based Hope House, which provides long-term transitional housing. Andrea Mallory, executive director of Hope House, was in attendance to support the funding request for Safe Haven.
“We need a facility that can house homeless in a short-term emergency type of situation,” Ballenger said. “Currently Hancock County does not have that.”
Greenfield residents may not believe the city has a homeless problem, Ballenger said, but that’s because the homeless go out of their way to remain hidden. He referred to tents in the woods off the city’s I-70 ramp, indications of people sleeping in vehicles in local junkyards, and a homeless man recently released from the hospital who needed a nurse to contact him for a follow-up but had nowhere to do so. Ballenger also recalled a family from his church who became homeless last year, noted Hope House is at capacity, and pointed to the expiration of eviction moratoriums that protected so many throughout the pandemic.
“We have a homeless crisis here in Greenfield,” Ballenger said. “…[W]e can be prepared before this crisis gets worse.”
The Comfort House
Mt. Comfort Church requests nearly $250,000 to renovate the parsonage at its Philadelphia campus into an emergency short-term housing option. The living space would be increased to 2,000 square feet to support two families or one large, multi-generational family. Units would be fully furnished and move-in ready for families displaced from their homes.
The Rev. Ethan Maple of Mt. Comfort Church said The Comfort House could help families who have been displaced by fire, flood, eviction from falling behind on rent or mortgage, and nonviolent domestic abuse.
“Each of these examples has happened in my congregation in the last 18 months, which is where The Comfort House vision began,” Maple said. “These circumstances, however, are affecting our residents countywide seemingly more today than ever before.”
The facility could help families in situations like those who lost their homes in a fire at Greenfield Crossing Apartments in October, he continued.
“Instead, these difficult situations lead to families broken up as they crash on the couches of relatives and friends, or being lodged in less-than-ideal places, or even having to relocate outside Hancock County,” Maple said. “This simply adds trauma to their tragedy. We can do better, and The Comfort House is a great place to start.”
Maple and Ballenger said their churches’ shelter initiatives would be sustainable after startup funds are awarded, should the county commissioners decide to do so.
Circle of Care
Meals on Wheels of Hancock County requests over $1.2 million to renovate the building at 312 E. Main St. in Greenfield into an accessible, collaborative nonprofit center. Multiple direct-service providers would be in one building, reducing access barriers for clients. The funding request includes construction costs, increased technology capacity, a cargo van, external signage and a one-year salary for a building and client manager.
The Hancock County Community Foundation is currently located at 312 E. Main St., but is moving into Realife Church’s former location at 971 W. U.S. 40 and has gifted its previous headquarters to Meals on Wheels in support of the Circle of Care vision.
Circle of Care’s supporters include Families United for Support and Encouragement, the Hancock County Children’s Choir, Hancock County Firefly, Hancock County Leaders in Navigating Knowledge, Healthy 365 and WorkOne.
Lynda Kosh, executive director of Meals on Wheels of Hancock County, described the facility as a one-stop co-location nonprofit center housing multiple providers offering a range of services and support.
“The assistance these organizations provide can change the trajectory of many lives, helping them gain economic self sufficiency, access to basic needs and empowerment,” said Kosh, who previously served as the executive director of an 88,000-square-foot shared nonprofit space in Indianapolis. “Not only does this make a transformational impact on our community, the collaboration of these nonprofit tenants and partners strengthens our reach as organizations, our efficiency as organizations and our effectiveness. …The parts are made better by the whole.”
The families and clients that come to the organizations that would have a presence in the Circle of Care typically have complex needs, Kosh continued.
“And no single organization is proficient in every area of the need that these folks present,” she said. “Human services can also be very difficult to navigate. Many clients require an actual circle of care, agencies working together and alongside them with warm hand-offs and connections that can ensure accountability and success in their journey.”
Kosh said if the startup request is awarded, the center would be sustainable through leases paid by the nonprofit organization tenants.
Mary Gibble, president and CEO of the community foundation, said the foundation convened applicants and other stakeholders over the past six to nine months to discuss the ideas and guide them toward tangible grant proposals.
“We are so impressed by the quality of the conversations and believe that these are viable proposals that have the potential to leave a long-lasting impact in our county,” Gibble said.
She also said the Partners for Animal Welfare Society, or PAWS, had to withdraw from applying for an initiative it had hoped to pursue due in part to a shortage of veterinarians to provide local low-cost spay and neuter services. She added New Palestine United Methodist Church had to withdraw as well due to overwhelming barriers to the success of an idea, including those related to construction costs.
Federal pandemic relief funding requests
Realife STEAM Academy expansion: $1,526,975.93
Evangel Church – construction of homeless shelter: $1,213,340.98
Mt. Comfort Church – emergency shelter: $249,375
Meals on Wheels of Hancock County – shared nonprofit space: $1,278,082
Total: 4,267,773.91
Available funds: $1,948,083.12
