Five Banks Step Up to Help Fort Smith’s Children’s Shelter

FHLB Dallas Special Partnership Grant Program Provided 5:1 Match of Members’ Donations

FORT SMITH, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Five banks in the Fort Smith, Arkansas, area joined the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) to provide $72,000 to Children’s Shelter to expand a program that assists youth who have aged out of foster care.

The five banks were Centennial Bank, Generations Bank, First National Bank Fort Smith, First Security Bank and Simmons Bank.

The Special Partnership Grant Program (PGP) grants help qualified nonprofit organizations fund a variety of administrative activities that are critical to serving their communities.

The Children’s Shelter provides a safe and stable home for youth in foster care from the region who exhibit emotional and behavioral challenges due to neglect or abuse. It serves about 300 children every year who have been removed from their home by the Department of Human Services.

All of the PGP funding it received will go to the GetREAL24 program, which assists foster children statewide who have turned 18 and have aged out of the system. GetREAL24 offers furnished, one-bedroom apartment units for eligible young adults. This living opportunity is combined with case management and life-skills training to equip foster youth to transition into adulthood.

“We were maxed out in our case management load; we only have one program coordinator and he manages all nine of our residents,” said Ashley Forsgren, director of development at the Children’s Shelter. “The PGP award will allow us to add another case manager, which will increase our program capacity to 15 residents and allow us to make a greater impact on more young adults.”

Funding under FHLB Dallas’ PGP was increased by $2 million in 2020 under FHLB Dallas’ COVID-19 Relief Program to support community-based organizations (CBOs) involved in affordable housing activities, stimulating small business development or providing small businesses with technical assistance.

The use of funds for these organizations was expanded to include COVID-19 relief. Through this unique grant program, FHLB Dallas member institutions contribute between $500 and $6,000 to a CBO, which FHLB Dallas matches at a 5:1 ratio (previously a 3:1 ratio) to provide the CBO up to $30,000 with the match and $60,000 per year in grant money. Grants are awarded annually through FHLB Dallas’ member institutions via a lottery system.

“We are so thankful for our member banks who saw this need and worked together to provide the Children’s Shelter with critical funding that will enable them to serve more young adults as they age out of the state’s foster care system and transition into adulthood,” said Greg Hettrick, director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank system created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $83.8 billion as of March 31, 2020 is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced advances and other credit products to approximately 805 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. Visit fhlb.com for more information.