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Ellis County Care Council recommends 2026 allocations for local nonprofit services
Summary
The Ellis County Care Council presented recommended 2026 funding allocations for local nonprofit programs, with several agencies and program-specific amounts outlined for the county to consider during the budget process.
Brett Gerber, representing the Ellis County United Way Care Council, presented the council's recommended allocations for 2026 at the July 8 Ellis County Commission meeting.
"My name is Brett Gerber, and I'm with the Ellis County, United Way Care Council," Gerber said as he introduced the council's recommendation process and membership. He described that the Care Council, made up of 12 volunteers representing the City of Hays, Ellis County and the United Way of Ellis County, divides into four categories (community and neighborhood; children and youth; health and rehabilitation; family and individual) to review applications and recommend funding.
The council recommended line-item allocations, including: First Call for Help — $4,000 (local assistance); an Affordable Housing Program — $7,500; Heartland Community Foundation (match) — $5,000; Ellis Alliance Sustainability — $5,000; Silver Hill Legislature — $500; Big Brothers Big Sisters — $5,000; Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center — $7,500; Northwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging (required match) — $30,000; Options for Safe Shelter — $10,000; Hayes Senior Center — $39,565; Foster Grandparent program — $7,425; and Senior Companion — $11,000. Gerber described other recommended line items and program splits during his presentation.
A commissioner noted the total requests exceeded available funds by roughly $8,500, and commissioners discussed how the council had broken requests into program-level line items. Commissioners asked whether any agencies on the current recommendation list were new compared with past years; Gerber and commissioners identified First Call for Help as an agency not previously listed in the county's past allocations and said a few prior recipients did not apply this cycle.
No vote on the Care Council recommendations was recorded at the meeting. County commissioners and staff indicated the council's recommendations will be considered as part of the ongoing 2026 budget process.
The commission will review budget drafts in coming weeks as part of the operating and capital budget discussion; the county administrator said any final allocation decisions will be made later in the formal budget process.
