By Lisa Carolin
This year’s pledge from 5 Healthy Towns to the Chelsea Friends and Family Wellness Coalition was $75,000. This is the sixth year of the pledge, which has decreased since the first year budget of $200,000.
That was the impetus for a discussion about community funding resources at the coalition’s April 13 meeting. Coalition member Reiley Curran led the conversation about other funding options and the possibility of changing the structure of the coalition’s monthly meetings.
“How are we going to fund everything we want to do as a wellness coalition?” asked Curran. “We’re talking about taking a more collaborative approach.”
Most of the coalition’s interventions have additional funding sources according to Chelsea-Area Wellness Foundation Community Investment Manager Matt Pegouskie. One of the potential funding sources, the Chelsea Community Foundation, was represented at the meeting by Anne Mann and Randy Ross.
Ross explained, “The Chelsea Community Foundation typically grants $50,000-$60,000 to projects that improve the quality of life for people within the footprint of the Chelsea school district.”
The coalition will continue to discuss the topic at its next meeting on May 4.
We celebrate the Chelsea Friends & Family Coalition decision to work more collaboratively in the community. It is the real magic of coalition building.
It was never the intent of the Foundation for the coalitions to get $200,000 per year in grant funding. It was our intent to jump start the coalitions in year one. In year two and three the coalitions received $100,000. Later, when the coalitions determined as volunteers they could do more with additional support, the Foundation hired staff to support their efforts and made available additional funds to help them build capacity.
The Chelsea Friends and Family Coalition is hard working and deserving of broad support by the larger community. Good for them for undertaking this important conversation.