2011 Community Response Fund Grants
Community Response Fund grants range in amount up to $10,000. They address key issue areas identified by WFA's study, A Closer Look, which examines the realities for women and girls living in the Puget Sound region. Operating and project grants are awarded to non-profit organizations serving and/or advocating for women and girls in one or more of these areas:
- Civic Participation and Leadership
- Education
- Health and Well–Being
- Safety and Violence
- Breast Cancer Resource Center, $10,000: Grant supports the Reducing Disparities in Breast Health Outreach & Education project. This effort exists to increase early detection of breast cancer in underserved communities by doing outreach to women and of color, particularly Latina women, and by providing early detection services to women who otherwise would not have access.
- Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Services of Whatcom County, $10,000: Grant supports the core work of this organization, the only one of its kind in Whatcom County, to provide advocacy-based support services to domestic violence and sexual assault survivors. Funds will help the organization continue to deliver its services via new strategies in a context of increased demand and diminished public funding.
- Eastern European Counseling Center, $10,000: Grant provides operating funds to support this organization’s work with domestic violence survivors who are of Eastern European descent with a particular focus on women who are low-income, uninsured and underserved. Funds will help further establish the organization’s commitment to address violence against women and provide mental health and case management services to survivors.
- Eastside Legal Assistance Program, $10,000: Grant provides operating support to help this organization deliver and expand upon its delivery of civil legal services to low-income women and domestic violence survivors in East and Northeast King County. Funds will mobilize the organization to expand upon their pilot programs to provide free legal services in domestic violence shelters and assist survivors in obtaining protection orders.
- Hilltop Artists, $10,000: Grant supports the Arts Connect program which develops the leadership of youth who have been court-involved through evidenced-based, arts programming. With an emphasis on serving girls living in the Hilltop neighborhood in Tacoma, this program works closely with girls to reduce recidivism and help them make healthy, tangible and lasting connections to the community.
- Lydia Place, $10,000: Grant supports increased organizational capacity to better serve an increasingly diverse community in Whatcom County by providing translation services to English Language Learners who seek services and support as these women leave abusive relationships and move from homelessness into transitional housing. Services to be delivered include weekly life skills classes, case management and support to children of these women.
- Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest, $10,000: Grant provides transition support for the Honoring Women’s Health project as the organization formerly known as Family Planning of Clallam County becomes integrated into Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest. During this transition year, funds will be used to help achieve the project’s goal to improve the health and well-being of rural, underserved women in Clallam County, with particular emphasis being placed on reducing breast health disparities among American Indian Latina and sexual minority women.
- Postpartum Support International of Washington, $7,500: Grant supports the planning and execution of a conference designed to better equip perinatal health-care providers to identify and treat Pregnancy and Postpartum Mood Disorders (PPMD’s) in women. The only conference of this kind held in the United States, this conference aims to increase the well-being of women and healthy development of babies by increasing the number of Health Care Providers educated around and screening for PPMD’s.
- Seattle Police Foundation, The If Project, $10,000: Grant supports this project in which previously incarcerated women use their own voices, experiences and stories to help the girls who are at risk of becoming or are currently court-involved to better understand their own situations and access the help and support they need. Funds will be used to complete next stages of this project through the development of a curriculum to be delivered to girls via interactive, multimedia workshops.
- Sexual Violence Law Center, $10,000: Grant provides operating support for this organization which, within the past year, has begun to provide direct, holistic legal services and advocacy support to victims of sexual violence and their families who would otherwise go unrepresented. The organization also aims to improve legal response to survivors in Washington State by offering a statewide legal help-line to survivors and by providing legal education to attorneys, judges and advocates on issues impacting survivors of sexual assault.
- Tasveer, $7,500: Grant supports the planning and production of Yoni Ki Baat, a South Asian adaption of The Vagina Monologues. This production written and produced by South Asian women and is used as a catalyst to engage participants and audience members in addressing culturally nuanced issues of gender-based discrimination, oppression and violence against women and to allow for new expression of women related to socio-political and economic issues.
- Womencare Shelter, $10,000: Grant supports the development of a new volunteer recruitment and staffing strategy created to ensure full staffing of the helpline during a time of increased demand and changing public funding. Grant will fund a new volunteer coordinator position which will lead the effort to train and staff the 24/7 helpline with volunteers between 5:00 PM and 9:00 AM.
