CHI Memorial has awarded $278,000 in grants to five local nonprofit organizations to improve community health. Recipients of the funds are Medical Foundation of Chattanooga, Welcome Home of Chattanooga, Catholic Charities of East Tennessee, LIFT Youth Center and HopeSpur. The funds will support local residents without health insurance, persons experiencing homelessness and youth programs.
Medical Foundation of Chattanooga received $67,500 to support Project Access. The program coordinates medical care between physicians, hospitals and other community partners who donate their services and local residents who don’t qualify for other programs.
Welcome Home of Chattanooga, which provides hospice and respite care to marginalized populations, received $80,852 to expand its social services, access to mental health treatment and nutritional support.
Catholic Charities of East Tennessee received $97,124 for respite care for individuals experiencing homelessness who are discharged from CHI Memorial with an order for home health care services.
CHI Memorial awarded LIFT Youth Center, a free afterschool youth center for middle and high school students in Catoosa County, $12,685 to provide violence prevention education.
HopeSpur received $20,000 for suicide prevention education and training.
CHI Memorial opened the grant program to nonprofits that address access to affordable health care and insurance, mental and behavioral health, and prevention and education.
CHI Memorial identified these priorities in its most recent Community Health Needs Assessment, which it conducts every three years to help the hospital and its community partners identify and address important health and social needs in the region.
Virtual school state STEM winner
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow has selected Hamilton County Virtual School as the Tennessee winner in its 14th annual STEM Competition. Each state winner wins $12,000 worth of technology.
For the competition, Hamilton County Virtual School is developing an app designed to teach children with autism how a computer works.
Hamilton County Virtual School has received a Samsung video production kit to document their project and create a three-minute video showcasing their STEM solution.
Solve for Tomorrow will select 10 national finalists in late-March. Each finalist will receive a $50,000 prize package.
In April, Solve for Tomorrow will name three schools as national winners. Each winner will receive $100,000 worth of Samsung technology and classroom supplies.
Solve for Tomorrow is a nationwide competition for students in grades six through 12. Participants leverage their knowledge of the STEM disciplines to create solutions to issues in their local communities.
Samsung launched Solve for Tomorrow in 2010 as a way to boost interest, proficiency and diversity in STEM.
Urban League launches business accelerator
Urban League of Greater Chattanooga has announced the 2024 cohort for its NextLevel Business Accelerator. The program begins in March; by its conclusion at the end of the year, participants will have a three-year growth plan vetted by local peers and business experts.
The Urban League designed its accelerator for businesses that have been operating for more than two years and have a solid customer base. Support partners include TVA and the Benwood Foundation.
This year’s cohort includes Antonio Tate, Party Bites Catering; Stacy Martin, Seahorse Snacks; Montrell Besley, Rolling Video Games; Jenna Wright, Southern Soul Yoga; Antonio Hickman, Humanitees Print and Design; LaShon Carter, Tiny Tigers Learning Center; Shaun Teague, Cue the Champagne; Marc Anthony Pierre, MAX Experience Barbershop; Kenyatta Ashford, Neutral Ground; Cassandra Tucker, Divine Purity Aurapothecary; and Luis Contreras, The Local Juicery.
Red Bank publishes events calendar
The city of Red Bank has released its Parks, Trails and Recreation Department calendar of events for 2024.
The schedule includes Food Truck Fridays, farmers markets, movies at White Oak Park and the Joseph Glasscock Community Center, community-wide cleanup events, the annual Jubilee, and the Christmas parade and festival. The date, time and location for each event are located at RedBankTN.gov. To navigate to the calendar, click on the “Departments” tab and then the “Parks, Trails & Recreation” tab.