Collaborative for Families addressing gaps in community
Getting consistent funding has always been a challenge for community aid organizations, and recently, maintaining staffing levels has become a growing issue for Butler County agencies.
On Thursday afternoon, Dec. 14, agency leaders gathered for the Butler Collaborative for Families’ annual Holiday Huddle to discuss challenges they have experienced during the year in hopes of finding solutions.
Becky Clouse, co-chairwoman of the Butler Collaborative for Families, said at the luncheon at the Monarch Place that the organization members hope to find solutions to problems to keep the community from losing any services.
“I think it’s something that has been a mutual struggle for a lot of the agencies,” Clouse said. “We’re all providing care, and that’s the struggle because the community is the one that suffers.”
The collaborative announced the 2024 mini-grant recipient, and this year, two programs received $4,000 in funding thanks to a match from Trinity Lutheran Church in Butler. Linda Thoma, the other co-chairwoman of the collaborative, said half the money agencies pay in membership dues funds the collaborative’s annual mini grant.
Clouse said Glade Run Lutheran Services’ warming center received $4,000, and the financial literacy program received $4,000 from Trinity Lutheran Church.
The warming center operates at 123 E. Diamond St. every night, and clients get information on permanent housing while having a place to stay overnight.
Emily Snow, director of quality and improvement for Glade Run Lutheran Services, said the grant money will help provide clients with a better experience.
“The warming center, we were able to open it earlier this year than we did last year, because this is only our second year,” Snow said. “Just being able to support the needs of the folks who are coming in, provide some snacks and food for them ... providing them coats, providing other basic needs.”
Last year, the collaborative awarded the mini grant to the Rise Up Rides program, which has helped provide transportation for people to get to grocery stores, food banks, jobs and more. Clouse helps administer that program, and said at the huddle it has provided hundreds of trips since Rise Up Rides began in February.
The idea for Rise Up Rides came out of nonprofits networking, and Thoma said the Holiday Huddle could lead to more ideas thanks to the breakout sessions its organizers facilitate.
“It’s definitely a time for celebration, definitely a time for networking, looking forward to the new year,” Thoma said of the Holiday Huddle. “We have some breakout sessions where people can share ideas, share gaps, things like that.”
Thoma said one of the collaborative’s focuses is finding resources and development for its member organizations, which is driven by member input and involvement.
“Looking at training opportunities that we can make available to our members is something,” Thoma said. “The idea behind the breakout sessions is to look for additional gaps in the system and then hopefully funnel them into our mini-grant process, we look for a solution.”
