Thanks to a three year, $275,000 federal grant, United Way of the Bluegrass (UWBG), in partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass, will utilize the experience and expertise of retired seniors to help local children through extended school day programs. The Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) engages those who want to give back while preparing school children for success.
 
This grant, funded through the Corporation for National and Community Service, will give more older Central Kentuckians the opportunity to use their skills and talents to help meet a great need facing the Bluegrass community.  The funds will provide for the recruitment, training, and placement of 300 senior volunteers in Central Kentucky, who will be matched with a child from the Big Brother Big Sisters program.  The new programs will be in Anderson, Clark, Scott, and Woodford counties. United Way already supports RSVP programs in Fayette, Jessamine and Montgomery counties.
 
UWBG was the only Kentucky grantee named for this national project. The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America and leads President Obama's national call to service initiative, United We Serve.
 
Congratulations to United Way of the Bluegrass for securing these federal dollars to support this important education initiative in their community.

The United Way, Strive Partnership and other community partners have received a $2 million Social Innovation Fund grant for their work in youth development and school support.  The Corporation for National and Community Service awarded the funds to 11 organizations out of 60 applicants. 

Rob Reifsnyder, president of United Way of Greater Cincinnati, said he thinks the grant will allow the organization to help more children. "We are honored to receive this sizable grant, and know it will help us build on years of collaborative work to identify what children and youth need to succeed from cradle to career," Reifsnyder said.

The United Way will receive the grant over a two-year period and in collaboration with community partners, will invest in programs in Cincinnati, Covington and Newport.

Click here to read the full article from Cincinnati's WLWT-NBC News 5.

Governor Steve Beshear visited a back-to-school fair for Rowan County students and their parents on Wednesday, to spread the message about the importance of health coverage for Kentucky's young people, encouraging those who qualify to apply for the Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program (KCHIP).  The program is for children younger than age 19 who do not have health insurance and whose family income is below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.  For example, a family of four can earn up to $42,400 a year.

Beshear's statewide initiative began in November 2008 with a simplified mail-in application, available online and through targeted outreach.  Efforts have included a focus on training community partners to assist with completion of applications; availability of enrollment materials at local health departments, Department for Community Based Services (DCBS) offices and Family Resource and Youth Services Centers (FRYSC); and outreach through health care providers, community action agencies, day care centers, faith-based organizations and many others.

One of the most difficult tasks is seeking out those who need assistance.  Beshear applauded the work of United Way and the other outreach partners for overcoming these obstacles.  Morehead State University's WMKY-90.3 FM public radio affiliate interviewed Beshear at the event.  Click here to listen to the clip.

"I want all Kentuckians to live well and have the best possible quality of life, particularly our young people," Governor Beshear said to students, parents and educators who gathered at the Carl D. Perkins Community Center in Morehead. "With the beginning of the school year right around the corner, this is an excellent time to make sure children have the health coverage they need to help keep them healthy this school year and beyond. KCHIP is a vital resource that can help families with that cost."