Success Stories

The Whole Person (TWP) recently received a grant for $15,000 from the State Street Foundation to support the delivery of Employment Services Program. TWP provides ongoing Supported Employment services to clients for additional assistance both on and off the work-site. Supports from job coaches may include addressing work performance, social interactions that negatively impact employment success, conflict resolution with coworkers/supervisors, maintenance of job skills, and motivation retention to ensure continued engagement with the program. Long-term vocational support is an individualized service, provided as often and as long as the person needs it for the purpose of maintaining a job. Job intervention may be needed as well as support for developing skills for promotion and career development that lead to personal growth and financial stability. 

Comprehensive Mental Health Services, Inc. (CMHS) recently received a grant for $416.000 from Jackson County COMBAT Treatment Program to support their Addiction Recovery Services Program. The program promotes abstinence by providing residential, outpatient day treatment, and supported recovery services to men and women over the age of 18 with drug and/or alcohol addictions. Staff seek to help clients improve their functioning, make progress on their treatment goals, and demonstrate positive life changes through trauma-specific services. Services also assist many clients in reducing or eliminating criminal behavior and improving their employment or educational status. The program encourages a high level of family involvement to support participants’ health, improve family relationships, and strengthen their recovery support network.

CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) was recently awarded a $5,000 grant from the American Century – Community Partnership to support their Child Advocacy Program. CASA will use funds for its Child Advocacy program that will provide 450 children with 185 Volunteers who advocate directly for children involved in the court system due to abuse, neglect, or divorce-related custody and visitation disputes.

CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Johnson and Wyandotte Counties was recently awarded a $10,000 grant from American Century Investments Foundation to support CASA’s Teen Advocacy program. CASA’s Teen Advocacy program grew out of a need to provide specific training for CASA advocates working with youth ages 14-18 most likely to age out of the court system without anyone to help them transition to adulthood. 

Comprehensive Mental Health Services (CMHS) recently received a grant for $34,980 from the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) Department of Aging Services to provide mental health services for clients over the age of 60. CMHS will address critical mental health issues of elderly individuals through the following services:
  • Mental health evaluation and assessment;
  • Individual therapy;
  • Group therapy;
  • Case management;
  • Information and education services; and
  • Community support services.

Developing Potential, Inc. (DPI) was recently awarded a $58,032 grant from the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City to support their Access to Services Program. The program supports better health for people in the day services program, increases program participation, and improves quality of life for participants.

Metro Lutheran Ministries (MLM) recently received a grant for $18,750 from the CommunityAmerica Credit Union Foundation to support the Family Empowerment program. Metro Lutheran Ministry will use the funds from Community America Credit Union Foundation to support its Family Empowerment program. Financial literacy is a key component of this program providing initial stabilization of two months of direct weekly financial literacy instruction leading into ten months of working side-by-side with clients as they learn how to integrate what they have learned into their life.

The YMCA of Greater Kansas City recently received a grant for $300,111 from the United Way of Greater Kansas City – Early Learning to support the YMCA Head Start/Early Head Start program. The YMCA Head Start/Early Head Start program provides quality early education, nutrition, and health services for income-eligible children.  The YMCA operates eight Head Start/Early Head Start programs.  These sites offer full-day care (four hours of Head Start programming) and up to seven hours of additional wraparound programming and care for children under the age of five.

Comprehensive Mental Health Services (CMHS) was recently awarded a $50,000 grant from Jackson County Community Mental Health Fund: Mental Health Levy to support rapid engagement and maintenance in mental health services. This grant focuses on identifying mental health needs of clients, establishing individualized goals with each client, reducing barriers to engagement in mental health care, and engaging treatment staff and other significant persons involved with the client in the feedback on individual progress.

KidsTLC recently received a grant for $5,000 from the Flo Harris Foundation to support the Street Outreach Services (SOS) Homeless Intervention Program. KidsTLC’s Street Outreach Services (SOS) program provides transitional aged youth (ages 16-24) as well as homeless, runaway, and at risk youth with a high level of support, as well as connections to other critical community services. SOS reaches out to youth through local school districts’ McKinney Vento liaisons as well as via a 24-hour crisis line and strategic partnerships with other youth serving agencies. Staff engage youth by providing survival aid, transportation, and life skills education with a primary goal to get any youth who needs it into permanent and rapid re-housing, or refer them on to shelter and transitional living programs as appropriate. The program strategically focuses on building trusting relationships with potential clients and providing current clients with wrap around support including case management, educational supports to earn a GED and/or be ready for college, employment support and job readiness training, financial literacy, mental health support, and rapid re-housing. KidsTLC's SOS program is the only program of its kind providing these types of services in Johnson County, Kansas, making it an essential resource for the county.