27-03-2025
Lafayette House receives $25,000 grant for youth mental health initiative
Lafayette House was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the Louis L. and Julia Dorothy Coover Charitable Foundation Regional Grantmaking Program, a partnership with the Community Foundation of the Ozarks managed by Commerce Trust Co.
Funding will support the organization's Rural Youth Mental Wellness Initiative, which serves people ages 12-21 in seven rural Southwest Missouri counties.
The Prevention Education Program implements evidence-based curricula such as Safe Dates, Dating Matters, and an interactive tool called In Their Shoes in rural schools, providing consistent support and early identification of mental health concerns caused by unhealthy relationships, teen dating violence or various forms of abuse through social media. The program will train educators and parents to recognize signs of mental distress and implement trauma-informed approaches, while also engaging the broader community through awareness events and educational programs.
Through this initiative, Lafayette House aims to serve youths and adults across Barry, Barton, Dade, Jasper, Lawrence, McDonald and Newton counties. The program addresses gaps in rural mental health services by providing accessible, preventative education support directly in schools and communities.
Lafayette House is one of 12 organizations receiving grants totaling $250,000 through the Coover Regional Youth Mental Health Grants program this year.
"This grant will allow us to expand our vital Prevention Education Program to reach more rural youth who need mental health support and education," Susan Hickam, executive director of Lafayette House, said in a statement. "In communities where mental health resources are often limited or difficult to access, this initiative will create a comprehensive support system for youth mental wellness."
Eli Moran, chief strategy officer at Lafayette House, said in a statement: "The Coover Foundation's investment in rural youth mental health comes at a critical time when we're seeing increased need for these services. This grant enables us to implement school-based interventions, community outreach and parent education programs that will have lasting impact on the mental wellbeing of young people across Southwest Missouri."
Julia Dorothy Coover, a 30-year Commerce employee, founded the Louis L. and Julia Dorothy Coover Charitable Foundation in 1992 to honor her husband's memory. The private foundation, managed by Commerce Trust, has funded more than $8.6 million in grants to benefit rural communities and school districts since 2001.
The Community Foundation of the Ozarks is the region's largest public charitable foundation serving donors, nonprofit partners and 55 regional affiliate foundations — including the Joplin Regional Community Foundation — with assets totaling $494 million as of June 30, 2024.
