American Legion Child Welfare Foundation Awards $566,691 in grants

The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation, in its 60th year, has awarded $566,691 to 18 non-profit organizations. These grants, determined during the annual meeting of the Board of Directors, held at the Sheraton Hotel City Centre in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Sunday, October 12, 2014, have been awarded to support youth-serving projects that seek to enhance the lives of children by addressing the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs of children. The following is a brief summary of the grants awarded for 2015.

Angel Flight West of Santa Monica, California, was awarded $10,000 for their project, “Promoting Fly-Anthropy – the charitable use of aviation to help children in need.” This grant will provide outreach and marketing efforts to reach families in need of medical transportation and to potential volunteer pilots.

Beads of Courage, Inc. of Tucson, Arizona, was awarded $40,000 for their project, “Beads of Courage.” This grant will fund the purchase of beads to encourage ill children as part of the Beads of Courage program. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Birth Defect Research for Children (dba Association of Birth Defect Children) of Orlando, Florida, was awarded $22,650 for their project, “National Outreach for Birth Defect Prevention.” This grant will help redesign the organizational website and advertise available resources to families and medical professionals. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

Children’s Cardiomyopathy Foundation of Tenafly, New Jersey, was awarded $25,400 for their project, “7 minute video to answer genetic testing questions as it relates to Pediatric Cardiomyopathy.” This grant will fund the production of a video to be distributed via electronic newsletter and online to reach interested families and physicians. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

Children’s Craniofacial Association of Dallas, Texas, was awarded $10,000 for their project, ‘Wonder-Choose Kind.’ This grant will provide educators with resources to teach children anti-bullying and kind behavior towards those afflicted with craniofacial issues. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

Children’s Institute, Inc. of Rochester, New York, was awarded $7,580 for their project, “Strengthening Military Family Relationships Through Play.” This grant will underwrite the production and dissemination of instructional DVDs to educate Boys and Girls Club staff on the needs of military children. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Children’s Organ Transplant Association of Bloomington, Indiana, was awarded $43,595 for their project, “The American Hometown Heroes for COTA Campaign.” This grant will fund an informational campaign that will connect Reserve and National Guard COTA families to Legion posts that support COTA. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

CureSearch for Children’s Cancer of Bethesda, Maryland, was awarded $31,500 for their project entitled, “Curesearch 2014 Educational Video Series.” This grant will produce and distribute videos on staying healthy while on chemotherapy, eating healthy and information on clinical procedures such as biopsy and ultrasound. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Diabetes Education & Camping Association of Florence, Alabama, was awarded $39,640 for their project, “Optimizing Outcomes at Diabetes Camp – Integrated HER System.” This grant will fund a mobile application and software for health data management. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

JAYC Foundation, Inc. of Santa Rosa, California, was awarded $50,540 for their project, “Creating Protected Spaces.” This grant will provide comprehensive education between families, mental health professionals and law enforcement agencies through booklets and videos.

Marfan Foundation of Port Washington, New York, was awarded $30,000 for their project “Parent’s Toolkit: Your Child and Marfan Syndrome.” This grant will provide informational toolkits for parents of children with Marfan Syndrome. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Mercy Flight Southeast of Leesburg, Florida, was awarded $21,761 for their project, “Project Outreach SE USA 2014.” This grant will fund a marketing campaign to advertise medical transportation services offered by the organization for public awareness and pilot recruitment.

Mercy Medical Angels of Virginia Beach, Virginia, was awarded $44,000 for their project, “Child Health Program – Info Dissemination Upgrade.” This grant will update and disseminate information on the organization’s child health program. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

National Autism Association of Attleboro Falls, Massachusetts, was awarded $58,075 for their project, “Big Red Safety Box Program.” This grant will enable the continuation of the Big Red

Safety Box program that addresses dangerous wandering incidents. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Our Military Kids of McLean, Virginia, was awarded $31,350 for their project, “Our Mission Continues: Moving into the Next Decade of Supporting Our Kids.” This grant will enhance outreach and marketing efforts of the organization. The American Legion Auxiliary and The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.

Spina Bifida Association of Arlington, Virginia, was awarded $25,000 for their project, “Educating Children with Spina Bifida on Staying Healthy.” This grant will underwrite the printing of “Another Way to Go,” a publication that teaches children about catheter care. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

The American Legion of Indianapolis, Indiana, was awarded $55,500 for their project, “2015 American Legion National Youth Programs Scholarships.” This grant will provide academic scholarships to the top youth participants of the organization’s national youth programs. The American Legion Auxiliary sponsors this grant.

United States Association of Blind Athletes of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was awarded $20,000 for their project, “USABA Mobile Coach.” This grant will expand the number of sports offered on Mobile Coach to assist blind youth athletes compete. The Sons of The American Legion sponsor this grant.