Our Commitment
The board and staff at the Putnam County Foundation are passionate about improving the quality of life in the communities we serve. To do so, we serve as community leaders in a variety of roles. Our leadership initiatives have ranged from convening donors to learn about an emerging community need, to quickly establishing a relief fund in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, to investing grant dollars to achieve positive community outcomes.
As we continue to develop these initiatives, it is vitally important to incorporate the voices of the individuals and families who are impacted by our work and that of our community partners. To that end, we seek a better understanding of the County’s most pressing issues and areas of need through a Community Needs Assessment.
The goals of this assessment are to identify and prioritize needs in Putnam County; unite organizations and resources from throughout our community; and, create solutions that produce significant and lasting results.
2023 Community Needs Assessment
In 2023, the Putnam County Community Foundation committed to leading a unique Community Needs Assessment which included a community-wide survey. It was conducted in four phases: interviews with community leaders, focus groups with individual communities, a county-wide survey, and public listening sessions. Each phase of the 2023 Community Needs Assessment provided a different perspective on the existing resources and the most significant needs of communities across Putnam County. With feedback from over 1,200 community members throughout each phase, PCCF identified the following as the top issues of concern in Putnam County.
1. Addiction
2. Mental Health
3. Jobs that Pay a Living Wage
4. Housing
5. Quality Healthcare
6. Safe Spaces for Youth
7. Food Insecurity
8. Early Care and Education
The Results
The insights gained from each phase provided valuable guidance in the Putnam County Community Foundation’s grantmaking and other strategic initiatives. The results from the Community Needs Assessment have also been shared publicly with our Community Partners, grantees, local government and other constituents. You can view or download the Community Needs Assessment Report now. Please contact us to request a printed copy of the report.
It is our hope that the information collected through the Community Needs Assessment will allow our community’s decision-makers to come together and create data-informed solutions to the issues that Putnam County residents are most concerned about and interested in addressing.
Special Request for Information Process
In response to the 2023 Community Needs Assessment, PCCF launched a Request for Information (RFI) for entities addressing mental health and substance use in Putnam County. Through the RFI, PCCF seeks to support initiatives and collaborators that can significantly improve these outcomes.
The RFI invited submissions from diverse stakeholders, including nonprofits, community groups, academic institutions, and healthcare providers. The collected information will inform PCCF’s work and special grantmaking initiatives, including $250,000 in special grant awards to be announced later in 2024.
The RFI submission form is now closed.
Submissions
PCCF invited submissions from a wide array of stakeholders, including nonprofit organizations, community groups, academic institutions, healthcare providers, and other relevant entities. The submission form was a short questionaire which was completed by all interested parties between July 1 - August 9, 2024.
Review
A Task Force of area experts, community members, PCCF leaders and others will review the submissions and recommend action to PCCF's Board of Directors. Recommendations may include grant funding, strategic partnerships and more.
Results
PCCF has allocated $250,000 in grant funds which will be awarded at the recommendation of the RFI Task Force and approval of PCCF's Board of Directors. Awards and other approved recommendations will be announced in November 2024.
Questions?
Our staff is here to help! Contact us at 765.653.4978 with any questions or concerns regarding our community leadership initiatives including the Community Needs Assessment.
Neysa Meyer
Sarah Stone