SUBJECT
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Approve Third Amendment to American Rescue Plan Local Fiscal Recovery Funding Agreement with Chapters Health Foundation Inc. on behalf of Good Shepherd Hospice. (No fiscal impact)
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DESCRIPTION
The United States government has provided the County American Rescue Plan Act funds (ARP Funds) to assist in responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency. A portion of the ARP Funds have been allocated to address COVID-19's impact on public health as well as its economic harm to households, small businesses, non-profits, and impacted industries. After requesting and receiving requests for an allocation of ARP Funds from small businesses and non-profit agencies located in Polk County, the Board selected recipients who will receive an ARP Fund award to address these impacts.
Good Shepherd Hospice (GSH) provides free, professional grief counseling on and off-site to all ages in Polk County. GSH is the only nonprofit provider of free, professional, and comprehensive bereavement counseling in the county. Free grief programming by GSH includes Free Bereavement Counseling for the community at GSH, Childhood Bereavement Toolkits (English/Spanish) distributed to all Polk County Schools, Grade-Appropriate Grief Healing Support Bags for Grieving Children and Teens, and Comprehensive Grief Support Programming at the Bethany Center for Grieving Children in Auburndale and Lakeland.
GSH is requesting a revision to allocation of funds for Bereavement Staff Salaries (trained grief counselors) to conduct community outreach, in-school grief support, and on-site grief therapy; Capital Items to pay for the ongoing Bethany Center aquarium maintenance expenses and to purchase needed inspirational and motivational d?cor; and Programming cost associated with creating an additional 50 grief Toolboxes and 360 Grief Comfort Kits for distribution to additional schools, funeral homes, hospital social workers, and other local organizations. (See Exhibit "A")
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