Reid Health awards first grant cycle focused on mental health, substance misuse programs

May 14, 2025 -- Reid Health Community Engagement is distributing grant funding to 19 local organizations in the first of three grant cycles this year.

This grant cycle focuses on mental, emotional, and behavioral well-being by improving mental health and reducing substance misuse with $100,000 being awarded to nonprofits, schools, and other regional organizations.

Requests were evaluated based on their ability to improve poor mental health-average number of days, death rate due to suicide, death rate due to drug poisoning, adults who smoke cigarettes, depression-Medicare population, and drug and opioid overdose rate.

Jess Przybysz, Director of Community Health & Engagement, said the number of applicants reflects the urgency of the need and the dedication of local organizations serving residents in Fayette, Franklin, Henry, Randolph, Union, and Wayne counties in Indiana as well as Darke and Preble counties in Ohio.

"It's clear our communities aren't just identifying challenges but actively working toward solutions," Przybysz said. "By aligning funding with the most pressing health indicators, we're investing in programs that can positively impact lives."

Katie Stephen, Community Engagement Specialist, said mental health and substance misuse continue to weigh heavily on communities.

"These grants are a strategic step forward, supporting the tireless efforts of organizations," Stephens said. "We're proud to support their efforts and to see the difference this funding will make for families across our region."

The most recent Community Health Needs Assessment identified three priorities - mental health and substance misuse; physical activity, nutrition, and weight; and maternal, infant, and children's health. As a result, the Community Grant Program awards $300,000 over three cycles for significant health needs annually.

Applications for the second cycle focusing on physical activity, nutrition, and weight closed May 9. Organizations with programs aimed at maternal, infant, and children's health will be able to apply for the third cycle from July 14 to Aug. 8.

The awards for the first cycle include:

• $2,680 to A Better Life: Brianna's Hope - Richmond Chapter for program and meeting supplies and a computer for recovery meetings.
• $7,000 to Birth to Five Inc. for its Parents As Teachers program to support personnel expenses.
• $9,000 to Bridges for Life for supplies, client needs, and transportation program expenses.
• $3,000 to Brighter Path Inc. to provide scholarships for equine assisted therapy sessions.
• $5,000 to Communities In Schools of Wayne County for Wendt Center Training Institute for loss and healing training for employees and for personnel cost for site coordination.
• $3,600 to the Dublin Community Club for vape detectors.
• $7,000 to Girls Inc. of Wayne County to support personnel, supplies, and materials for the after-school program.
• $3,750 to JACY House to support personnel costs and supplies for parenting workshops.
• $7,500 to Mount Zion Baptist Church for personnel, supplies, and materials for its Rise, Reform, Recover program.
• $5,000 to Preble County Art Association for instructor fees, supplies, and scholarships for its essential humans program.
• $5,000 to Preble County Council on Aging Inc. for home delivered meals.
• $5,000 to Recovery Rocks Club Inc. for supplies, program materials, and speaker fees for recovery groups and meetings.
• $5,000 to Servants at Work for materials to build and install home ramps.
• $4,270 to Soldiers in the Army of the Lord Ministries Corp. for curriculum, workbooks, supplies, and personnel for Freedom House programming.
• $5,000 to Start with Art Ltd. for supplies, printing, workshops, and program materials for mental health and substance misuse programming.
• $7,200 to Stayin Alive to support personnel for Recovery Café space fees, program materials, and speaker fees for lunch-and-learns.
• $5,000 to the Independent Living Center of Eastern Indiana to support personnel for ramp installation and prefabricated, recyclable, or reuseable ramps.
• $5,000 to The Shepherds Way Christian Ministries (Cross Road Recovery Center for Women) to support a part-time case manager to provide one-on-one services to help women develop skills during their recovery.
• $5,000 to Whole Family Community Initiative Inc. (House of Ruth) to support professional fees for weekly counseling for women in the program.

Community benefit is the basis of the tax-exempt status of not-for-profit hospitals. Community benefit is defined as programs or activities that improve access to health services, enhance public health, advance health knowledge through research and education, and/or relieve the burden of government to improve health.

In 2010, the Affordable Care Act added new requirements for tax-exempt hospitals in the areas of community health needs assessment (CHNA), implementation strategy, billing and collections, and reporting. In 2014, the IRS issued final rules implementing these requirements. The goals of these provisions are to ensure tax-exempt hospitals are meeting the health needs of their communities and to ensure greater transparency and accountability.

Grants, along with other specific outreach and requirements to meet Reid Health's not-for-profit status, have put more than $168 million back into the community in the past five years. A committee of Reid's governing board and community members reviews grant requests. The grants are awarded as part of the health system's efforts as a mission-driven, not-for-profit organization.

More information about the Reid Community Grant Program, the health needs assessment, and the implementation strategy can be found at ReidCommunities.org.