Clarinda, Iowa – Officials with the Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO), say the organization recently helped the City of Clarinda obtain a $600,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) from the Iowa Economic Development Authority, which announced awards to cities last month. Southwest Iowa Families, Inc., Clinical Director Berneeta Wagoner says “One in five persons will have a mental health diagnosis in their lifetime, so even if you’re not the one, you’ll have a family member or be close to someone who does. With the stigma around mental illness becoming less, we’ve seen a 30% increase in the number of people seeking out mental health services per year.”

Wagoner said the agency simply did not have capacity to meet growing demand in the current building, and the CDBG dollars are a crucial piece of the funding puzzle for the long-awaited expansion project. The renovation and expansion will allow Southwest Iowa Families, Inc., to reduce overcrowding, reduce wait times for services, and allow staff to meet increased demand for mental health services in the southwest Iowa region. Clarinda City Manager Gary McClarnon first encouraged the agency to partner with the regional council of governments. The city’s agreement to act as a fiscal agent for the CDBG award opened up additional funding for the Southwest Iowa Families, Inc., expansion project that otherwise would not have been available.

SWIPCO routinely provides grant writing and administration services to its member communities in Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Pottawattamie, and Shelby Counties and brought over $53 million in grants to the region in the last two years alone. Southwest Iowa Families, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing several services to children and families including mental health, support for parents, and foster care after care services. The organization serves more than 1,000 clients from several southwest Iowa counties.