OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS
We have learned alongside our Community Partners as they have faced challenges, overcome barriers, and achieved extraordinary successes. Find out more about each project and the outcomes below.
YEAR
2010
GRANT CATEGORY
Health & Well-Being
GRANT AMOUNT
$105,000
Organization:
Austin Groups for the Elderly
Project Title:
Resources for Caregiving for Seniors
Project Description:
Austin Groups for the Elderly (AGE) empowers caregivers, the elderly, and their families through education, advocacy, resources, and support.
AGE’s Resources for Caregiving for Seniors project will expand the Health Equipment Lending Program (HELP), which currently serves a critical and unmet need in Travis and Williamson counties. Program expansion will increase the durable medical equipment available in addition to improving access to the equipment. The equipment (e.g. wheelchairs, walkers, shower chairs, and power lift recliners) loaned will increase from over 750 pieces in 2009 to more than 1,500 pieces estimated annually.
AGE will accomplish this by increasing public awareness of the service and improving efficiency of storage, retrieval, and distribution of equipment while also optimizing volunteer activity and community cooperation.
Grant Status:
During the grant period, the program exceeded the goals of number of pieces of equipment loaned (a projected increase from over 750 pieces in 2009 to more than 1,500 annually). In the first grant year, AGE loaned 2,405 pieces. In the second grant year, AGE loaned 2,337 pieces.
AGE created a media awareness campaign and collaborated with other organizations to increase public awareness of AGE’s need for donations, which also increased the demand from seniors. The grant enabled AGE to hire a full-time staff member, who propelled the previously small program forward by creating education and safety materials for distribution with equipment, better utilizing volunteers, researching and establishing the program structure and guidelines, and helping to install an inventory tracking system to record and track donations. The HELP expansion has helped AGE improve its logistics, public awareness, data tracking, and volunteer management.
Impact Austin authorized a change in the proposed budget: $11,000 was moved from the travel portion of the budget that was not needed and used to convert an old kitchen to a new office for HELP, providing improved customer service and a better and safer working environment for staff.