The Kutztown Strong organization was awarded a $20,000 Communities That Care grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, Nancy Brooks, Main Street Manager, Kutztown Community Partnership announced recently.
“The grant was the result of strong collaboration with the Kutztown Community Partnership,” said Kelly Neyhart, Community Options and Activities chair of Kutztown Strong. “Their sponsorship and effective support allowed Kutztown Strong to meet the requirements of the grant application, resulting in the grant award.”
“The funding has allowed Kutztown Strong to hire a mobilizer who will help to organize the group during the developmental planning,” Brooks said. “Bringing a lifetime of knowledge, as well as an educational background in social work, Sheryl McKlveen, Kutztown Strong’s new mobilizer, will spend the next nine months helping the group to develop an effective organizational plan with the goal of allowing Kutztown Strong to become a fully functioning non-profit organization.”
When asked what she was most looking forward to in her new position, McKlveen said, “I am most anxious to begin working with these energetic Kutztown residents that came together to organize Kutztown Strong. Substance abuse is an issue that effects individuals, families, and communities. By focusing on the goal of developing the potentials inside each of our children, and with support of our families in the community, we enhance their whole life experience.”
Kutztown Strong is a community coalition of concerned citizens established last April to address substance abuse issues in Kutztown and surrounding regions. It was formed to make a difference in the prevention and treatment of substance abuse among children, teens and young adults through the creation of a safe, fun environment for young people.
The Kutztown Community Partnership was formed to create a sense of community and history in Kutztown and foster effective collaboration among all of its elements.
The grant proposal was written by Marsha Goodman-Hinnershitz, financial chair of Kutztown Strong with support and assistance from Brooks. The young organization has not yet been granted 501c3 status, which would have allowed it to apply on his own behalf. The board of KCP recognized the importance of Kutztown Strong’s mission and offered it’s support through its fiscal sponsorship of their application. “The success of the application,” said Neyhart, “resulted largely from KCP’s support and our accomplishments to this point, such as being co-recipients of the 2014 Joseph ‘Bud’ Haines Community Award and our ongoing educational and youth activity efforts.”
The Haines award is given each year by the Council on Chemical Abuse to a community group with an ongoing commitment to the prevention of drug and alcohol abuse in the community.
The next meeting of Kutztown Strong will take place on February 24 at 6:30 in the Kutztown Area High School library. Interested are residents are encouraged to attend.
