Live Well Montgomery County receives grant
Live Well Montgomery County is a 2020 recipient of the Business Leadership Network Community Grant.
In 2015, the University of Iowa College of Public Health inaugurated the Business Leadership Network (BLN) Community Grant Program to support programs and activities that build collaborations and support community well-being.
The purpose of the BLN Community Grant is to foster collaboration in Iowa communities in addressing areas of identified community health or public health need. The intent is also to begin or strengthen partnerships with business and industry and to link with the University of Iowa College of Public Health experts and resources in appropriate topical issues.
“We’re excited to support these locally initiated projects to improve community health,” says Edith Parker, Dean of the College of Public Health. “The grant program is one way the college is partnering with communities and business leaders across the state to increase the well-being of Iowans.”
Grants are awarded on a competitive basis to nonprofit organizations and local government entities in communities that are located within the state of Iowa. The grant program funds, in conjunction with an equal cash or in-kind match from another organization, will be used for public health-related initiatives and projects in the recipient communities.
The following five recipients will receive cash grant awards of up to $3,000:
• BIO Girls – Davis County, Bloomfield
• Community Foundation of Greater Muscatine, Muscatine
• Live Well Montgomery County, Red Oak
• Northeast Iowa Wellness and Recreation Center, Postville
• UnityPoint Health – Trinity, Bettendorf
Live Well Montgomery County will utilize funding to assist in the collaboration with the Red Oak Community School District to help integrate and start the Live Well Tigers Kids Garden project.
“The Live Well Tigers Kids Garden is an exciting partnership to help our youth learn more about healthy choices and will help feed the students in their own school. This project will teach our students the value in working hard at something make a difference in their lives and the lives of their peers.” Tom Messinger ROCSD Superintendent
The project will fight against food insecurity and overall poor health outcomes in Montgomery County with an elementary school-based kids’ garden program. During the school year students at Inman Elementary School will tend the seven raised garden beds and the produce will be used by the school district. In the summer, Live Well Montgomery County will run a kids’ program that will focus on the science and nutrition of gardening. Participants will be able to take the garden produce home, and any leftovers will be used in the summer lunch program, donated to local food pantries and senior centers.
Live Well Montgomery County currently runs an 8 week garden program in conjunction with the Community Giving Garden. “We are so excited to be expanding and growing our Kids Garden Program. Our goal is to not only teach our area youth the basics of gardening but also about eating healthy cooking and the benefits of eating local”, stated Laura Kloewer, LWMC Chair and MCMH Community Wellness Coordinator.
Live Well Montgomery County will be matching the $3000.00 grant to bring the total dollars available for the project up to $6000.00. “We are hopeful that in the future we will be able to get kids garden programs up and going in all our area schools, but we are so excited to be able to partner with the ROCSD to pilot this program”, said Kloewer.
The 2020 LWMC Kids Garden Program will run from June-Aug and the new Live Well Tigers Kids Garden will be up and running by fall of 2020. Please contact Laura Kloewer at 712-623-6491 to sign up or with any questions.