Grants awarded to Berks County programs to address health-related issues

The Home Health Care Foundation Fund of Berks County Community Foundation awarded grants to five programs addressing health-related issues in Berks County. 

The $143,500 grants are intended to help organizations that help residents recover from illness or disability at home, support preventative health care and provide health-related charity care to residents, the foundation said. 

The Home Health Care Foundation Fund has distributed $658,700 in grants since it was established at the Community Foundation in 2020.  

The grants for this round of funding: 

• $40,000 to Berks Encore for its “Medically-Tailored Meal Program.” In this pilot program, 25 individuals will receive two medically tailored meals and one snack per day, seven days per week, for 12 weeks. 
• $40,000 to Western Berks Ambulance Association for ongoing cardiac monitor replacements. 
• $30,000 to Opportunity House to turn two storage rooms into bedrooms for shelter residents recovering from illness, replace 75 shelter mattresses, and support the salary of a new social worker who will coordinate a program for at-home testing and recovery from COVID. 
• $27,000 to the YMCA of Reading & Berks County for the “Blood Pressure SelfMonitoring Program,” which is designed to help adults with hypertension lower and manage their blood pressure by focusing on regular self-monitoring. The grant will cover the cost for 108 participants in the first year of this program, including blood pressure monitors and cuffs for each participant. 
• $6,500 to John Paul II Center for Special Learning for “Medical and Mental Health Crisis Preparedness.” The center said the pandemic highlighted the center’s need to expand its medical supplies and to train to respond more quickly to medical emergencies and mental health crises. 

This fund will accept applications for another round of funding from June 1 until August 15. 

Programs that serve Berks County and/or those counties that are contiguous to it are eligible to apply. Berks County organizations receive preference.  

The maximum amount available per organization is $40,000. To apply, visit bccf.org and click on “apply for a grant” under “Scholarships + Grants” in the website menu or go to http://bccf.link/grants.