The Salina Regional Health Foundation’s Community Health Investment Program awarded five grants at its February committee meeting for a total of $108,000.

Funding for CHIP primarily comes from Salina Regional Health Center, which tithes a percentage of its operating margin each year to the Salina Regional Health Foundation. Additional funding for CHIP has come from the Salina Regional Service Auxiliary.

Funding priorities for CHIP primarily focus on children’s health, childhood obesity, mental health, substance abuse, aging populations, heart disease and stroke. Applications for CHIP are accepted on a quarterly basis. Application deadlines for the remainder of 2018 are April 24, July 24 and October 23.

Grants in February included:
• $40,000 to the School Marathon Foundation for its School Marathon Program held each fall at
Salina’s 11 elementary schools. Over the course of six weeks students jog the equivalent of a
marathon, or 26.2 miles, learning how to set and achieve goals and the benefits of exercise.
• $25,000 to Noon Network Ambucs for its efforts to expand the handicapped accessible
playground at Coronado Elementary School in Salina. Coronado is the USD 305 school
designated to serve children with disabilities.
• $24,000 to Shiloh Ranch Ministries to install heating and air conditioning in its main activities
building so its programs for children and youth can be offered year-round.
• $15,000 to North Central Flint Hills Area Agency on Aging to sponsor the 2018 Sunflower Fair
and Regional Outreach Initiative to be held September 18 at the Tony’s Pizza Events Center.
• $4,000 to Brookville Cardinal Wrestling to help purchase an approved wrestling mat for kids to
participate in wrestling, since wrestling is not a school sponsored sport at Ell-Saline.