CARING COUNCIL GETS GRANTS OF $782,169

Cape Girardeau Community Caring Council will spend more than three-quarters of a million dollars this fiscal year in hopes of strengthening local families and encouraging service agencies to work together.

The council, which is the designed community partnership for Cape Girardeau County, will receive $627,456 from the state budget to fund projects.

This is the third year the local project has received similar state funding amounts for projects. But the council has been active much longer. The brainchild of state Rep. Mary Kasten, the council encourages service agencies that serve similar clientele to talk with each other and work together.

The idea has been expanded statewide and to communities across the country. In Missouri, "It's bringing some decision-making to the local level about what services are offered and making some money available to support what we think is needed," said Shirley Ramsey, executive director of the council.

The council here works with seven state agencies. Each agency contributions a portion of its budget to fund the Community Partnerships.

Specifically the money is used for Caring Communities, a school community based project. In Cape Girardeau, Caring Communities works with school and community leaders to provide services in the May Greene, Franklin, Jefferson and Washington school neighborhoods.

The local plan is being rewritten to reflect the changes in elementary schools. May Greene and Washington schools are slated to close as a new elementary school opens.

Neighborhood Advisory Council helps lay out the plan for each area. Projects range from parent meetings to after-school tutoring to professional therapy.

In addition, the Community Caring Council has been awarded $148,142 through House Bill 1519, early childhood and care funding.

The money will be used in three areas: startup and expansion of early childhood education and care programs that promote school readiness, increased quality of early childhood education programs for child-care providers pursing additional training, and support for low-income parents who choose to stay home with their children.

The program will be sub-contracted through Southeast Missouri State University and Educare.

The Department of Social Services and Child Support Enforcement has awarded a $6,571 grant for a pilot program to work with never-married low-income fathers. "Proud Parents" will offer one-time parenting workshops to include information on fathers' rights and responsibilities, bonding and attachment, how to communicate with the child's mother and community resource information.

Cape Girardeau is one of two pilot sites for the new program. The other is in Kansas City.

"They have tried a number of ways to get young fathers involved with their children," Ramsey said. "This is another attempt."

East Missouri Action Agency is the sub-contractor for the program.

"All of this has been a real collaborative effort," Ramsey said. "We've sort of become a catalyst to convene and facilitate and bring people together. We make sure we get the right people together to do what needs to be done."