Recent Senior Living Grants

Spring 2024

LOGAN: $70,000
Funds will help provide support to three areas: the first is to renovate current group and supported living homes for seniors to provide a safe, loving, and dignified home for individuals of all abilities. The second area is for LOGAN’s new Life Enrichment and Employment Pathways programming that directly supports seniors getting out into the community. The third component is a van for group and supported living homes to use with a wheelchair accessible lift.

Saint Joseph Health System: $30,000
Senior Citizens in St. Joseph County continue to be affected by poverty, inequity, poor health, and challenges accessing community resources. Improved access to health care, better utilization of community resources, and individualized care coordination helps to achieve optimal health outcomes for the growing population of vulnerable senior citizens in our community. Funds will help support SJHS Community Health Workers (CHW) integrated into the health and human service network in our community. CHWs collaborate with providers and guide seniors into appropriate services, increasing equitable access to resources and advancing care coordination.

South Bend Heritage Foundation: $10,000
South Bend Heritage Foundation has aimed to enhance the lives of low-income, senior residents in South Bend by providing senior programming that successfully enhances resident life, while meeting all components of aging in place principles. These include supportive services and activities that offer opportunities for engagement, education, and continued socialization to preserve their dignity as the population grows older. Funding will help support SBH’s Aging in Place Resident Life Program, which offers low-income seniors residing at SBH properties opportunities to reduce isolation, improve their health awareness and access to resources, and keep their minds stimulated and active, thereby reducing cognitive decline.

Fall 2023

enFocus Inc.: $200,000
enFocus is receiving funds to support the execution of the Greener Homes Retrofit pilot program, a new City of South Bend program administered by enFocus to subsidize weatherization and electrification for low to moderate income homes. The program will benefit the seniors living in the homes with upgraded equipment and utility bill savings, but beyond that will create a framework for how the community can begin to address lowering residential housing carbon emissions toward the City’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The program includes guidance through energy audits, assistance with contracting processes, and provision of vital financial resources and expert guidance to access federal grants and rebates from the Inflation Reduction and High-Efficiency Electric Homes Rebate Acts. A strong partnership with Habitat for Humanity Aging in Place program will enable enFocus to identify income-qualified senior residents and ensure proper weatherization before proceeding with electrification upgrades. Once the pilot is complete, there are additional funds from the EPA for further implementation in the community.

Spring 2023

Habitat for Humanity: $300,000 (payable $100,000 per year for 3 years)
Funds will be used to support the Aging in Place Roof Repair Program. The program completes roof repairs and replacements for low-income seniors in St. Joseph County. Through existing work, they have identified roofs as the most critical home repairs needed by local seniors. Low-income seniors do not have the resources to pay for the repairs and they do not know who they can trust to do the work properly. Last year Habitat completed 13 roof repairs and had to turn people away due to exhausting funding. They intend to complete 66 roof repairs and replacement projects in the next three years.

Greencroft Communities Foundation (For Hamilton Grove): $40,000
Funds will be used to create a garden space that residents from all areas of the facility can safely access at the Hamilton Grove senior living community location in New Carlisle. Hamilton Grove is creating this space as part of their 100-year birthday celebration. It will be wheelchair accessible with walkways for those with limited mobility. Plans also include benches, picnic areas, and planting of trees and bushes. The space will be closest to the skilled nursing wing, but also open to all residents across the continuum of care offered. Hamilton Grove currently serves 208 residents, with 180 receiving Medicaid or rental assistance. By providing an inviting and safe area, it will encourage residents, visitors, and team members to access the outdoors.

LOGAN: $21,000
These funds will provide $10,000 for LOGAN to update some of the furnishings in three of the group homes and $11,000 Protective Services which provides guardianship, advocacy, crisis support, help navigating government assistance and community education for vulnerable citizens who need to be protected from abuse, neglect, or exploitation. Currently, their protective services caseworkers are serving 50 senior clients.

South Bend Heritage Foundation: $10,000
Funds will help support the Aging in Place Resident Life Program. For more than 20 years, South Bend Heritage has aimed to enhance the lives of low-income, senior residents in South Bend by providing resident life and senior initiative programming that successfully meets all the components of aging in place principles, including supportive services and activities that offer opportunities for engagement, education, and continued socialization to preserve dignity as the population grows older. Through the work of the Aging in Place Resident Life Program, low-income seniors at SBH properties are provided with opportunities to decrease isolation, enhance health awareness and resources, and keep their minds stimulated and active, reducing cognitive decline.

Spring 2022

LOGAN: $65,000
This grant will provide funding to increase the quality of life of seniors at LOGAN by providing upgrades to residential group homes: painting, increasing handicap accessibility and safety, a bathroom remodel, and the addition of durable outdoor furniture. In addition, grant funds will provide much-needed support for seniors in LOGAN Protective Services.

Robinson Community Learning Center, University of Notre Dame: $40,000
To address the social isolation experienced by seniors during the past two years of the pandemic, Robinson Community Learning Center (RCLC) will use this grant to scale up its Programs for Senior Adults, providing expanded opportunities for intellectual discourse and learning, social interaction, and community engagement—more classes and clubs, an expanded network of programs, volunteer opportunities, and one-time events (concerts, field trips, bus tours).

HealthLinc: $25,000
Funds will support HealthLinc’s Food as Medicine project, focusing on underserved low-income senior citizens in St. Joseph County who screen positive for food insecurity. In 2021, HealthLinc served 6,651 patients over the age of 60, 30% of which (1,984 patients) were seen at one of their St. Joseph County clinics.

South Bend Heritage Foundation: $10,000
This grant will help support South Bend Heritage Foundation’s (SBHF) Aging in Place Resident Life Program, through whih low-income seniors at SBHF properties are provided with opportunities to decrease isolation, enhance health awareness and resources, and keep their minds stimulated and active.

New Carlisle Olive Township Public Library: $3,250
This grant will support the free Senior Health Series offered by the New Carlisle-Olive Township Public Library (NCPL). Running from October 2022 through March 2023, the series includes exercise classes such as yoga, tai chi, stretch and release, and low-impact cardio, as well as two daytime healthy cooking classes designed for seniors. The program will also include healthcare screenings and health education.

Fall 2021

LOGAN: $36,800
This grant will support the pressing needs of LOGAN’s senior clients, including a wheelchair-accessible van to transport Adult Day Services clients, general funding for LOGAN’s guardianship and advocacy program, and support for emergency client needs such as housing, clothing, and medical items. Funding will also be used to address residential living needs, including adaptive and handicap-accessible items placed in client bedrooms, bathrooms, and living spaces. All LOGAN senior clients that require support from this grant are diagnosed with an intellectual or developmental disability.

REAL Services: $25,000
As part of its COVID Recovery Plan, REAL Services needs to reengage and recruit volunteers at a volume that is greater than what the organization has experienced in the past. The need is urgent and stretches across program areas. Grant funds will be used to launch a multifaceted media campaign that will include billboards, TV and radio spots, print publications and other marketing materials to recruit approximately 160 additional volunteers in St. Joseph County.

Spring 2021

REAL Services: $350,000 (payable over 3 years)
Funds will be used to support Care Connections at Milton Village REAL Services’ project that will be unique to Indiana and like no other in the country, as far as true person-centered dementia care and caregiver support. REAL Services, the Center for Hospice Care, and their partners set out to create a new model for dementia care and a comprehensive caregiver support center. The Foundation granted $750,000 for this project in 2019.  This additional award brings our total commitment to $1.1 million. This center will address the needs of caregivers and the needs of those affected with dementia. The Caregiver Resource Center will focus on the caregiver, where they will increase their knowledge base, find support, comfort, and recharge. Milton Village will create a unique state of the art dementia focused adult day center that will promote well-being, expressive arts and person-centered care.

South Bend Heritage Foundation: $10,000
Funds will be used to help South Bend Heritage Foundation (SBHF) enhance the lives of low-income senior residents by providing resident life and senior initiative programming that includes components of aging in place principles. This included supportive services and activities that offer opportunities for engagement, education, and continued socialization to preserve dignity as the population grows older. Through the work of the Aging in Place Resident Life Program, low income seniors at SBHF properties are provided with opportunities to lessen isolation, increase health awareness and resources, and keep their minds stimulated and active, reducing cognitive decline. 

LOGAN: $7,000
Funds will be used to support two training and educational opportunities for LOGAN staff to learn how to work with those with dementia. First, the online class Dementia with a Heart provided by Alzheimer’s & Dementia Services, where after LOGAN would have access to the coursework and manuals to train staff at their discretion. The second is a collaborative undertaking with REAL Services to sponsor a conference by The National Task Group on Intellectual Disabilities and Dementia Practices, allowing it to be held in the Midwest for the first time. Support of the conference also includes guaranteed spots for staff at the 2 conference days as well as an additional “Train the Trainer” opportunity. 

Winter 2020

LOGAN: $20,000
Funds will be used to allow LOGAN senior clients to age-in-place in the various group, waiver, and supported living sites owned by LOGAN Community Resources, by updating areas to be easy to access and to make them ADA compliant. These updates at various homes include an upgraded bathroom, a patio, cement work to improve accessibility, lift chairs, an ADA toilet and appliances.

REAL Services: $50,000
Funds will be used to support REAL Services Adult Guardianship Program which helps to improve health of the community by providing care and support to the disabled and senior citizens in St. Joseph County who are the most vulnerable due to neglect or mistreatment of individuals by family or friend caregivers who often take advantage of the diminished state of the individuals.  Although funds are received through government grants, the funds are not enough to provide the level of service needed to provide for even the basic needs of their clients.

Spring 2020