(Capitol Notes - Graphic Illustration/MetroCreative)

CHARLESTON — The West Virginia First Foundation announced Monday more than $1.8 million in grants to agencies in Wood County and the surrounding area in the Initial Opportunity Grant program.

Wood County is in Region 3 where $2.55 million in grants were announced by the foundation, which was established through the opioid settlements reached with pharmaceutical companies and distributors and the state of West Virginia.

The funds support programs for diversion, prevention and interdiction, recovery and transitional housing and child advocacy. Region 3 includes Wood, Tyler, Pleasants, Ritchie, Wirt, Calhoun, Roane and Jackson counties.

“These grants represent more than just funding. They reflect a shared commitment to building a healthier, safer West Virginia from the ground up,” Region 3 Board Chairman Tom Joyce, mayor of Parkersburg, said. “I’m proud to see Region 3 leading with innovative, community-centered solutions.”

Several community-based organizations from the area received funding to support programs that align with the foundation’s mission and the region’s priorities. Programs concern critical areas such as diversion and interdiction programs, youth prevention and workforce development, child advocacy centers and PPW neonatal abstinence syndrome programs and transitional and recovery housing expansion.

The Initial Opportunity Grant started in 2024 and has awarded about $17 million statewide. North Star Child Advocacy Center in Wood County received the highest of awards to agencies around the state, $720,000 for its expansion. The board of the foundation held its first quarterly meeting in March at the Wood County Resiliency Center and then visited the advocacy center.

Region 3 recipients and the amount of the grants were:

* Boys & Girls Clubs of Parkersburg, $190,123 for outdoor renovations.

* Boys and Girls Club of Pleasants County, $54,924 for the SMART Moves and Career Launch.

* Hope House Ministries, Ravenswood, $200,000 for transitional and recovery housing expansion.

* Jackson County Health Department, $192,000 for interdiction and diversion programs.

* Mid-Ohio Valley Board of Health, Wood County, $296,764 for transitional and recovery housing programs.

* North Star Advocacy Center, Wood County, $720,000 for child advocacy centers

* Public Defender Corp. of the 5th Judicial Circuit, $69,485 for diversion and interdiction programs.

* Ritchie County Primary Care Association doing business as Integrated Health Centers of West Virginia $81,276 for youth prevention and workforce development.

* United Way Alliance of the Mid-Ohio Valley, youth prevention and workforce diversion, $57,000.

* Westbrook Health Services, diversion and interdiction programs, $298,686.

* West Virginia University at Parkersburg, $39,925 for youth prevention and workforce development.

Regional Expert Panels are required under the agreement with the foundation and positions are voluntary and must be approved by the full board, Joyce said. The seven areas of expertise and the corresponding Region 3 members are:

* Treatment, including mental health and pharmacology: Jolie Kerenick, Westbrook.

* Prevention: Mike Pifer, retired chief of police.

* Recovery and lived experience: Allison Browning, MA, counseling.

* Systems of care, health policy and management including finance: Amy Yokum, CEO Integrated Health Centers.

* Law Enforcement & Judicial Systems: Rick Woodyard, sheriff of Wood County.

* First Responders: Joe Martin, retired chief of police.

* Corrections and Reentry: Aaron Simonton, state Department of Corrections.

Regional panelists participate in developing strategies to engage the public within their regions to identify funding priorities, needs and submit findings to the regional elected board member, Joyce said.

Upon request of the foundation chairman of the board, committees, regional board members or someone authorized by the foundation, regional panels may review grant applications from the region and submit findings and recommendations to the regional member, Joyce said. At all times regional panels, either collectively or individually, are encouraged to convey merging regional needs to the board member including information that supports strategic planning of the foundation, identifies emerging threats and needs and identifies data-supported trends for substance use, addiction and recovery, he said.