Des Plaines awards $160,000 in social service grants

Twenty-eight organizations will receive municipal grants totaling $160,000 through Des Plaines' annual social service program.

Recipients included: the Alliance for Immigrant Neighbors, a Des Plaines group that got $4,000; the Hoffman Estates-based Children's Advocacy Center of North and Northwest Cook County, which got $5,000; the Maine Niles Association of Special Recreation in Morton Grove, which got $2,000; the Arlington Heights-based Northwest Center Against Sexual Assault, which got $3,000; and the Northwest Suburban Day Care Center in Des Plaines, which got $9,500.

The city council approved the grants this week. Funding was included in the annual city budget.

The city's health and human services division evaluated the grant requests. Grants ranged from $2,000 to $15,000 each.

The grants were awarded based on several criteria, including: what local needs an applying agency meets; the number of Des Plaines residents served; the percentage of clients from Des Plaines; and the abundance or scarcity of the service provided.

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged Des Plaines-area social service agencies to serve a growing number of clients, Kathy Puetz, a community social worker for the city, wrote in a memo about the grants.

"These clients have been affected by job loss, reduced hours and health concerns related to COVID-19," Puetz wrote.

Because of the pandemic many of the agencies now use online video technology for activities, support groups and meetings, Puetz wrote. Some are offering curbside food and meal disbursement to ensure service continues, she said.

The council awarded $160,000 in grants to 36 organizations in 2020.

A full list of the grant recipients can be found online at: desplaines.org/government/citydept/hhs/funding.htm.