SOS Final Awardees 2011

Organization: Aim High
Grant Requested: $ 25,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 25,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2010
Organization Focus: Education
Mission Statement: Aim High empowers motivated middle school students from high risk environments to strengthen their character, self-confidence, determination, and initiative through a challenging, engaging academic and personal enrichment program.

Organization: Almost Home, Inc
Grant Requested: $ 10,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 10,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2010
Organization Focus: Social Services
Mission Statement: Through the ministry of transitional housing, education and support systems, Almost Home provides a safe and compassionate environment where young mothers who are living on the margins of society today are empowered to develop their emotional, social, academic, and family skills to become self-sufficient, responsible adults and care giving parents to their children positively affecting future generations

Organization: Gateway Greening
Grant Requested: $ 25,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 25,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011
Organization Focus: Social Services
Mission Statement: Gateway Greening promotes urban neighborhood vitality and stability, healthy living and quality of life through community food projects, education and wellness programs and civic greening. This mission is accomplished by forming alliances with non-profit organizations,faith based institutions, institutions of higher learning and neighborhood groups to provide resources for citizen-managed open spaces that foster healthier, safer and more enriched lives.

Organization: Gateway to Hope
Grant Requested: $ 7,500.00
Grant Approved: $ 7,500.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2008
Organization Focus: Health
Mission Statement: The Gateway to Hope mission is to save lives by arranging breast cancer treatment for uninsured and underinsured individuals who are not eligible for publicly funded treatment programs and who have no other viable means to obtain medical treatment.

Organization: Let's Start
Grant Requested: $ 15,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 15,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2010
Organization Focus: Social Services
Mission Statement: Let's Start, Inc., an organization led by and for formerly incarcerated women, aims to break the cycle of incarceration in families by using the personal experiences of its participants to support recovery, educate the community and inform policy.

Organization: Lydia's House
Grant Requested: $ 20,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 20,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2008
Organization Focus: Social Services
Mission Statement: Lydia's House works in faith to end domestic violence by being a place of healing and a voice of hope for abused women and their children.

Organization: Project Backpack
Grant Requested: $ 15,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 15,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2009
Organization Focus: Social Services
Mission Statement: To distribute backpacks filled with necessities and comfort items to police departments, social service agencies and shelters to give to the children -- the silent and forgotten victims of neglect and domestic violence -- who are removed from their homes and placed in foster care. Our goal is to help these at-risk children have a better today and brighter tomorrows.

Organization: South Side Day Nursery
Grant Requested: $ 20,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 20,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011
Organization Focus: Education
Mission Statement: South Side Day Nursery's mission is to nurture, educate and inspire children and families with limited resources, fostering healthy development and a strong foundation for success. South Side Day Nursery's vision is that our children love to learn, live purposeful lives and contribute positively to the community.

Organization: St. Louis HELP
Grant Requested: $ 10,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 10,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2010
Organization Focus: Health
Mission Statement: St. Louis HELP collects donations of new and used home medical equipment, cleans the equipment and then lends the equipment to anyone in need, for any length of time, at no cost. Types of medical equipment include, but is not limited to, manual/power wheelchairs, bath chairs, hospital beds, van lifts, commode chairs, walkers, canes, bath chairs, grab bars, etc.

Organization: The Belle Center
Grant Requested: $ 12,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 12,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011
Organization Focus: Education
Mission Statement: The Belle Center promotes the rights and expectations of all children to be fully included in the community. The center provides a progressive, family-centered inclusive approach to education and community life that supports children with disabilities.

Organization: The Little Bit Foundation
Grant Requested: $ 20,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 20,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011, 2009
Organization Focus: Education
Mission Statement: The mission of The Little Bit Foundation is to build strong partnerships with St. Louis schools in order to provide the essential support to disadvantaged children which will help break down barriers that inhibit personal growth to create a more focused learning environment.

Organization: The Walker Scottish Rite Clinic for Childhood Language Disorders of St. Louis, Inc.
Grant Requested: $ 10,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 10,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011
Organization Focus: Health
Mission Statement: The Walker Scottish Rite Clinic is committed to teaching two- through six-year-old children with speech and language disorders the communication skills necessary to succeed in school and throughout their lives. This goal is achieved through early identification and long-term therapy and by training parents to use techniques with their children at home.

Organization: Volunteers In Medicine, Inc.
Grant Requested: $ 20,000.00
Grant Approved: $ 20,000.00
Year(s) of Grants: 2011
Organization Focus: Health
Mission Statement: Volunteers In Medicine's mission is to operate a free medical Clinic to provide primary medical care and pharmaceuticals to adult residents of St. Charles and Lincoln Counties who have no medical insurance of any sort and family incomes less than twice the Federal poverty guideline.