HSSA Funds $240,000 in Immediate Grants to Help Combat COVIF-19 Impacts

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

The Health Sciences and Services Authority (HSSA) of Spokane County announced on March 19th it would provide funding to applicant organizations serving the immediate needs and challenges of citizens and students impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“Our Board saw the imminent need for financial support for organizations on the frontline of protecting our community and its citizens from the impacts,” said HSSA Board Chair Nancy Isserlis, “and on this Friday – a week later -- checks were in the mail.”

The grants are intended for those organizations that have immediate needs in serving Spokane
County citizens and total $240,000, and must be spent within the County. The grantees are as follows:
* The Guardians Foundation Mission House --- $12,000
* Pioneer Human Services -- $18,000
* The Salvation Army – $30,000
* Spokane Neighborhood Action Partners (SNAP) - $40,000
* Catholic Charities - $40,000
* 2^nd Harvest - $50,000
* Innovia Foundation COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund - $50,000

“Our belief is that some of these funded organizations have much broader reach than HSSA alone in meeting needs,” Isserlis said, “but the choice was difficult given that we had 37 responses. There remain many deserving needs to be met, and we hope that other organizations will step up, “she said.

Given the nature of the coronavirus pandemic, there will likely be more waves of health impacts and the community will need to continue to help.

For more information about HSSA visit www.hssaspokane.org(http://www.hssaspokane.org/) . If you have further questions, contact Susan Ashe, Executive Director at HSSA at 509.474.0798 or by cell at 509.995.8356.

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PLEASE NOTE: The HSSA office is closed during the COVID-19 “Stay Safe, Stay Home” directive, but we are willing to work with media to entertain one-on-one interviews, if desired. Contact the Executive Director to discuss.


About HSSA:

The Health Sciences & Services Authority (HSSA) of Spokane County was established in 2007 for 15 years by the Washington legislature, authorized county-wide by Spokane County in 2008 and began operating in 2009. It was reauthorized for 15 years in 2019 by the state legislature. Its mission is to invest in health sciences research to promote economic development, advance new therapies and procedures to combat disease, and to promote public health. HSSA invests funds to create and support a nationally competitive health sciences research cluster in Spokane County, and works to catalyze higher education research and the health sciences industry that will lead to higher wage jobs, long-term sustainability and economic diversification. For more information, visit our website at www.hssaspokane.org (http://www.hssaspokane.org/)  or call 509.474.0798.