Projects totaling $1,007,901 at 18 non-profit agencies have been selected for funding through the City of Wheeling’s ARPA allocation to the Community Foundation of the Ohio Valley (CFOV)/United Way Grants process. While the Community Foundation’s designation was $1 million, the overage of $7,901 will be covered by additional funds from the City’s ARPA allotment.

“A committee of volunteers representative of the Community Foundation and United Way worked together to review grant applications and make funding decisions,” said CFOV Executive Director Susie Nelson. “Thirty-five grant applications were received totaling more than $2.4 million in requests. The review process was challenging, but that was expected with the knowledge of the many great nonprofit organizations in our City.”

During an August 2022 meeting of City Council, the board approved a $1 million allocation of ARPA funds to the Community Foundation for distribution to local non-profit agencies.

“The City of Wheeling very much appreciates the partnership with the Community Foundation for the Ohio Valley to help distribute $1 million of the City’s American Rescue Plan Act funds to local nonprofit organizations,” said Mayor Glenn Elliott. “With such a surplus of worthy funding requests, we felt that the Community Foundation would be best positioned to assess the needs of the local agencies. And we very much appreciate their assistance in in making these important distributions of pandemic relief funds within the City.”

Nelson explained the selection process began with the development of an application that was reflective of Treasury regulations for ARPA funds. Then, a review committee representative of the Community Foundation and the United Way was selected. Once applications were received, they were scored based upon their relation to COVID, community impact, including the number of people served and how relative the project is to community needs, sustainability of the project, expectations for success and being transformative for the City of Wheeling. After scoring, the committee met to make final grant recommendations.

“The Community Foundation put together a systematic and professional process to provide a fair opportunity for City non-profits to apply for ARPA funds,” said City Manager Robert Herron. “Their efforts have produced an excellent group of worthwhile programs and projects that will benefit our community for years to come.”

The grant recipients, their project names and the amounts awarded are as follows: 

• $73,370 - Augusta Levy Learning Center - Growth, Education, Services, Partnership
• $80,000 – CASA - CASA for Children Family Support
• $30,000 - Catholic Charities WV - Emergency Rental Assistance
• $100,000 - Children’s Home of Wheeling - Kitchen Install & Building Safety Upgrades at Inpatient Psychiatric Hospital for Children & Adolescents
• $50,000 - Easter Seals Rehabilitation Center - Improve Access to Healthcare for Children Disproportionately Impacted by COVID
• $15,000 - Faith in Action Caregivers - Volunteer Match Program
• $31,076 - Harmony House - Child Advocacy Center Model
• $45,000 - HoH Share - Center for Resilient Community
• $100,000 - Holy Family Childcare Center - Childcare Center Stabilization
• $40,000 - House of the Carpenter - Post-Pandemic Food Security for At-Risk Populations
• $56,700 - Laughlin Community Center - HVAC Healthy Air
• $46,100 - NAMI Greater Wheeling - COVID-19 Mental Health
• $33,655 - Ohio County FRN - Food Security Team Support
• $70,000 - Salvation Army Wheeling - Salvation Army Renovation Project
• $100,000 - Wheeling Health Right - Pandemic Recovery and Protection Plan
• $52,000 - YMCA Wheeling - Clean Air Upgrades
• $45,000 - Youth Services System - Employee Retention Initiative
• $40,000 - YWCA Wheeling - Low Income Rental Assistance