FEEDING THE GULF COAST, INC. FEEDING THE FUTURE Grant Year: 2022 | Focus Area: Health and Wellness| Grant Amount: $103,820 | Grant Status: FINALIST Working through member organizations and special programs, the mission of Feeding the Gulf Coast, Inc. is to provide nutritious food to meet the challenge of feeding people who are hungry as a result of systemic poverty, personal crisis, or disaster. Feeding the Gulf Coast also educates the public regarding domestic hunger and proper nutrition. Their programs include The Mobile Pantry Program, which executes mobile pantries in low-income, underserved neighborhoods, and rural areas, providing households with enough food to last one week. Their Backpack Program meets the needs of chronically hungry children by providing them with nutritious and easy- to-prepare food to take home on weekends and school vacations to supplement school meals. Their Summer Meals Program and Afterschool Meals Program offer snacks and meals to chronically hungry children when...

HEALING PAWS FOR WARRIORS, INC. Grant Year: 2022 | Focus Area: Health and Wellness| Grant Amount: $103,820 | Grant Status: FINALIST Healing Paws for Warriors (HP4W) is a local veteran founded/veteran led 501(c)(3). Their mission is to provide rescue-to-trained service dogs to combat veterans faced with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and/or Military Sexual Trauma (MST) at no cost to the veteran with continued support, reducing the statistic of veteran suicide, increasing self and family health and wellness. Dogs only come from local rescues and dogs and veterans learn as a team. The HP4W team consists of a combat war veteran, practicing PTSD therapist, professional service dog trainer, veterinarian, and a host of volunteers. Ongoing mentorship is provided to those veterans who have completed HP4W training and been paired with a service dog. The Family Integration Program coaches the families of service members to manage the difficulties they...

DISTRICT ONE MEDICAL EXAMINER SUPPORT, INC. Grant Year: 2022 | Focus Area: Health and Wellness| Grant Amount: $103,820 | Grant Status: In Progress The District One Medical Examiner Support, Inc. (DOMES) provides medical examiner services for almost 800,000 residents of the district. Through the District One Medical Examiner’s Office (D1MEO) of Florida they execute their mission to serve and protect the interest of the community by maintaining the highest standard of professionalism and integrity in determining the cause and manner of death. The District Medical Examiner’s Office plays an indispensable role at the intersection of public health and criminal justice with a commitment to independent investigations, advanced science, and a deep compassion for families affected by sudden loss and profound trauma. D1MEO is responsible for carrying out the requirements of the Medical Examiners Act codified in Florida State Statute 406. D1MEO maintains a 24-hour on-call investigator and doctor to respond to reports...

United Service Organization, Inc. USO Pop-Up Mobile Initiative Grant Year: 2021 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $101,820 | Grant Status: Complete The USO's mission is to strengthen America’s military service members by keeping them connected to family, home and country, throughout their service to the nation. This is accomplished by maintaining a constant and significant presence in the lives of those serving our country and their families and by providing a continuum of care at every step of their journey. From the time they swear their oath of service to the time they transition successfully back to civilian life, the USO is by their side. The USO is continuously adapting to the needs of those in uniform and their families so they can focus on their important mission. The scope, scale, presence, reach and knowledge, and close collaboration with the military, give the USO the unparalleled ability to meet...

United for a Good Cause, Inc. Hope Squad Peer to Peer Suicide Prevention for Schools Grant Year: 2021 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $101,820 | Grant Status: In Progress The mission of the organization is to promote the spirit of service, giving, unity and resiliency while instilling hope within the youth. Formed in 2004 by a group of leaders coming together to help unite the diverse youth in the community, an initial organization focus was on youth leadership development through the Youth LEADership Conference and charitable holiday giving to families in need through their Emerald Coast Christmas Miracle Fiesta. In the spring of 2019, the organization added a focus on suicide prevention and bullying. To successfully address this focus, the organization implemented Hope Squad, an evidence-based school peer-to-peer suicide prevention program currently in use in 33 states and Canada, with over 1,000 schools with 30,000+ members worldwide. The program...

PACE Center for Girls, Inc Girls Going Places Grant Year: 2021 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $101,820 | Grant Status: Complete The mission of Pace Center for Girls (Pace) is to provide girls and young women an opportunity for a better future through education, counseling, training, and advocacy. Pace programs serve girls ages 11 to 17 with three or more adverse childhood experiences, who are at high-risk for delinquent behavior. Pace employs gender-responsive, trauma-informed, prevention and early intervention programs for girls with multiple risk factors. Pace was established as an alternative to institutionalization or incarceration for adolescent girls at-risk of high school dropout and involvement in the justice system. Pace opened its doors locally in 1994, serving more than 3,000 girls with a focus on providing academic, social services, and transition services. These are delivered via three distinct programs, the Pace Day Program, the Pace GED Program, and the...

Bright Bridge Ministries Updated Kitchen, Uplifted Lives Grant Year: 2020 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $106,000 | Grant Status: In Progress Bright Bridge Ministries (BBM) is a non-profit agency that began as an outreach ministry of Richards Memorial United Methodist Church with the name Pensacola United Methodist Community Ministries (PUMCM) in 2007. PUMCM was founded to address the many faces of hunger in Pensacola as bagged lunches were handed out to people who approached the church in need of food. PUMCM was rebranded to BBM in 2019. The mission of BBM is to provide food, housing and spiritual support to individuals in need. They treat people with dignity, care and acceptance to empower and assist them in their journey toward recovery and renewal. They have grown over the years into an organization that addresses more than just the hunger of those in the local area. In addition to meals,...

Ecomfort, Inc. Food as a Tool: Impacting lives in the Community Mentally, Physically and Spiritually Grant Year: 2020 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $106,000 | Grant Status: In Progress The mission of Ecomfort is to provide emergency assistance to the homeless and economically disadvantaged individuals of Escambia County. This assistance is comprised of emergency food, hot meals, job placement assistance, resource coordination and guided computer use. Ecomfort, Inc. was founded in May of 2007 as an outreach of Epps Christian Center, Inc. The organization has expanded services in the community, serving individuals and families. Ecomfort started off serving breakfast from 6:00 - 9:00 a.m. five days a week but has since added a food and clothing pantry that operates twice weekly. Ecomfort distributes frozen food, produce and dry goods to the community weekly, and works with other agencies to provide linking services to individuals. Food is used as...

Healing Paws for Warriors, INC. Save a Veteran/Rescue a Dog Grant Year: 2019 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $106,000 | Grant Status: Completed Founded in 2015, Healing Paws for Warriors (HP4Ws) is a local, veteran founded/veteran led 501(c)(3) that provides rescue-to-trained Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) service dogs at “no cost” to veterans faced with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Military Sexual Trauma (MST) with continued support, thereby reducing the statistic of veteran suicide and increasing family health and wellness. Initially, the program was established by a handful of community members, all with ties to the military, to help support over 10,000 veterans in the Florida Panhandle who have experienced PTSD. A program that is known throughout the community by its “red shirt” with the “ Save a Veteran/Rescue a Dog” slogan, it continues to grow, graduating 17 veteran/K9 teams and projecting an additional...

Manna Food Pantries Generating Hope to End Hunger Grant Year: 2019 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $106,000 | Grant Status: Completed The mission of Manna Food Pantries (Manna) is to offer emergency food assistance, service the food-related needs of vulnerable populations, and engage the entire community in the fight against hunger. In 1982, a local study concluded that there was a need for a centralized clearinghouse for the collection, storage and distribution of non-perishable food items to individuals and families in emergency situations. Community leaders responded by incorporating the Manna Food Bank. A Board of Directors was established, start-up monies were raised, inventories amassed, and an operations staff was hired. The Manna Food Pantries opened its doors to serve clients on January 3, 1983 as a local, grassroots 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting hunger in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties. All services are offered free of charge, and...

Health and Hope Clinic, Inc. IMPACT100: How to Save a Life Grant Year: 2019 | Focus Area: Health & Wellness | Grant Amount: $106,000 | Grant Status: Completed Founded in 2003, the Health and Hope Clinic is a volunteer and donor driven free medical and dental clinic established by the Pensacola Bay Baptist Association to help meet the needs of the medically uninsured and under-served populations in the greater Pensacola and Escambia County area. Additionally, Health and Hope is supported by community individuals, groups and organizations. The Clinic incorporated in 2009, and tax-exempt status was granted by the Internal Revenue Service in July 2009. In January of 2014, the Clinic moved into a newly constructed building on East Olive Road. Currently, the Clinic has 200 volunteers, 900 active patients, and recorded 7,100 patient visits last year, providing over 1.8 million dollars in medical services. Numerous primary and specialty care providers offer services including...