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Care Council recommends nearly all requested county funds for local social-service programs
Summary
Haley Belzer presented the Care Council’s recommended allocations of Ellis County funding to a set of local social-service programs, including specific program amounts (examples: $23,000 to Ellis Nutrition Center, $39,565 to Hays Senior Center, $30,000 match for NW Kansas Area Agency on Aging, $10,000 to Child Advocacy Center).
Haley Belzer, chair of the Care Council housed at United Way, outlined the council’s recommended distribution of Ellis County outside-agency funding for the coming budget year and emphasized that the council funds specific programs rather than general operating expenses.
"So this is going to be the 2nd year where Ellis County has partnered with the care council that is housed under United Way to allocate to recommend funding allocations for a variety of social services," Belzer told commissioners. She explained the council’s 12-person process, site visits in January and program-specific review before recommending funding amounts.
Belzer listed program recommendations and their purposes: $2,000 for 1st Call for Help local assistance and $1,000 for its Backpacks for Kids program; $5,000 to Heartland Community Foundation (match month); $9,000 to Big Brothers Big Sisters for mentor training; $6,000 to CASA for training court-appointed advocates; $10,000 to the Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center for a child-friendly interview room; $30,000 in required match funding for the Northwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging; $23,000 for the Ellis Nutrition Center and $2,500 for the Victoria meal site; $39,565 for the Hays Senior Center meal program; and other smaller awards and allocations tied to the county alcohol-tax distribution.
Belzer said the council focuses funding on discrete programs and conducts site visits to verify program needs, adding that the council frequently is able to recommend nearly all of the amounts agencies request. Commissioners thanked the volunteers and the Care Council for the work of reviewing applications and visiting sites.
The presentation did not request an immediate formal county appropriation vote in the transcript; Belzer said she would return for further conversation if commissioners needed additional detail.
