Strafford County discusses $200,000 sheriff’s office wellness grant application

Strafford County commissioners discussed a proposed Department of Justice Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) wellness grant for the sheriff’s office that county staff said would be about $200,000 over two years and would begin Oct. 1 if awarded.

The discussion centered on the grant’s scope and administrative requirements. County staff said the program — developed in collaboration with two University of New Hampshire social-work professors — would cover voluntary therapy, financial-planning assistance, gym or membership stipends and other employee wellbeing services, and that the application requires no county matching funds.

County staff told commissioners it may be a few months before the county learns whether the application is successful. They also said that, depending on the final grant size and terms, the county might need to return to an executive committee or to the commissioners for additional authorization once the award is known. An MOU related to the application was described as due on Monday.

Commissioners noted the potential benefit of extending services to all sheriff’s office employees — including deputies, dispatchers and civilian staff — rather than limiting the program to a subset of personnel. No formal vote on accepting funds was recorded during the discussion; staff said they would bring paperwork to commissioners for signature if the grant is awarded.

The item was discussed as part of the commissioners’ regular business agenda and did not include a formal approval of the grant award itself during the meeting.