County approves grants

September 22, 2004|by TARA REILLY

The Washington County Commissioners on Tuesday approved grants for seven youth- and family-based programs.

Washington County Community Partnership for Children and Families recommended the programs to the County Commissioners. The grants went to the following:

· Boys & Girls Clubs of Washington County, $8,454 for a technology program at the Pennsylvania Avenue location. The program, Club Tech: Digital Arts Festival, will provide 30 children with 300 hours of technology instruction and practice. It will include photo illustration, music making, movie making, Web design and graphic design during after-school hours.

· Washington County Public Schools, $5,000 for a program for teenage girls. The program, Girl Power II, will allow four to six teenage girls from each of the eight county middle schools - or a maximum of 48 - to participate in a two-day overnight conference at Fairview Outdoor School. The conference will consist of workshops by community agencies whose missions are to build strong, young women. Workshop topics include communication skills, teenage pregnancy prevention, substance abuse and family/relationship violence, among other topics.

· Otterbein United Methodist Church, $1,200 for the Mothers of Preschoolers program (MOPS). MOPS will give mothers an opportunity to meet once a month for a couple of hours to participate in discussion groups, listen to speakers and participate in other activities while their children receive child-care services.

· Walnut Street Community Health Center, $1,411 for Winning Flossophy, an oral health program for fourth- and fifth-graders. A special emphasis will be placed on proper diets and healthy lifestyle habits. The program will be offered to approximately 100 students.

· Girls Inc., $7,211 for the Parents Nights program, which consists of six parents nights offered to approximately 60 Girls Inc. members and their parents. The program is directed toward youth development and life skills.

· Hancock Police Department, $724 for the Stay Sober and Live program offered to 80 Hancock Middle-Senior High School students. The seminars will promote abstinence from alcohol, particularly while driving.

· Interfaith Service Coalition Inc., $1,000 for the five-day Adventures in Friendships summer day camp offered at no charge to 40 middle-school students in Hancock. The program will teach various simple, basic life and safety skills to those who often are home alone and who frequently care for younger siblings. Participants will be taught about cooking and nutrition, how to handle household emergencies, ways to improve self-confidence and self-esteem, CPR and other skills.

|

|

|