CFO issues fundraising challenge to nonprofits

Community Foundation of the Ozarks has issued a fundraising challenge to 14 Springfield-area nonprofits, promising to issue up to $115,000 in matching grants.

The funding would address red-flag issues marked in the 2013 Community Focus report card released in September.

The selected agencies have until Feb. 3 to raise funds. CFO would divide the $115,000 in grant funding equally among the 14 organizations, meaning each is eligible for about $8,214, according to a news release.

The agencies, in alphabetical order, are:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Ozarks, to cover operational expenses for donation centers;
• Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri, to hire an additional social worker for its crisis maternity center;
• Consumer Credit Counseling Service, to cover operational expenses to provide clients education and solutions for credit issues;
• Council of Churches of the Ozarks, to purchase food and support its Crosslines program;
• Court Appointed Special Advocates of Southwest Missouri, to support a coordinator's salary;
• Family Matters Resource Center, to cover costs associated with support services for foster care and adoption;
• Great Circle, to cover costs associated with the care of abused or neglected children, or those with developmental disorders;
• Pregnancy Care Center, to provide wellness and support services for women facing unplanned pregnancies;
• Ronald McDonald House Charities, to cover Tooth Truck costs for providing dental treatment and prevention to at-risk children;
• The Arc of the Ozarks, for supported-living housing costs for its clients with disabilities;
• The Child Advocacy Center, to conduct forensic interviews for child abuse investigations;
• The Doula Foundation, to cover operational costs supporting families during pregnancy and childbirth;
• The Victim Center, to support additional adolescent therapists, child advocates and support services; and
• United Way of the Ozarks, to provide scholarships for children at six Greene County Schools to participate in the Discovery Center of Springfield's Science on the Road program.