When a child goes missing, every second matters. A Kosair for Kids grant announced today will hopefully prevent tragedies in our community by better protecting our most vulnerable children if they wander from home. The region’s most comprehensive children’s charity awarded over $10,000 to the Jefferson County Search Dog Association (JCSDA) for Project Lifesaver equipment. The technology will reduce recovery time and prevent tragedies like those some local families know all too well.
“For more than a century, Kosair for Kids has been a safety net for children who face hurdles,” explained Kosair for Kids President Barry Dunn. “Today’s grant helps us to widen that safety net while increasing our protection of vulnerable children. While we hope this equipment is never needed, it is our honor to provide it for a time of crisis.”
The JCSDA is a non-profit organization that provides search and rescue services to nine Kentucky counties (Bullitt, Henry, Jefferson, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, and Trimble) and six southern Indiana counties (Clark, Crawford, Floyd, Harrison, Scott, and Washington). Its qualified search and rescue dogs and handlers assist requesting agencies in searching for lost individuals and victims of flash floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters. More than 30 team members are ready to respond at a moment’s notice and have answered the call when families need them most.
In 2019, JCSDA searched for Walker Henry Weeks, an eight-year-old boy with autism who wandered from home. That situation ended in tragedy, with the team finding Walker’s body in a pond near his father’s home in Eminence, Kentucky.
“We will never forget the heartbreaking end to Walker’s search,” said JCSDA board member Amber Devine-Stinson. “This generous grant from Kosair for Kids will honor his memory and hopefully prevent other families from enduring the same pain.”
The award allows JCSDA to purchase electronic devices that transmit a signal if a child with special needs wanders from home. Searchers can immediately locate the signal and begin looking in the child’s last known location. Project Life Saver can reduce the recovery time and protect first responders who find themselves on the trail of a missing child. This grant could benefit up to 25 children diagnosed with a medical condition that makes them more susceptible to wandering or elopement behavior.
Today’s announcement is the first of the most recent grants approved by the Kosair for Kids Board of Directors. Kosair for Kids has promised nearly $12 million to partners who will provide life-changing assistance to children through healthcare, research, education, social services, and child advocacy.
For 101 years, Kosair for Kids has been the catalyst for helping all children live life to the fullest. This year is no exception. With grants from $2,500 to $2 million and ranging from helping disadvantaged youth learn life skills to groundbreaking medical research, this financial assistance delivers on the Kosair for Kids’ promise to spread more joy, care, and hope than ever before.
“We are so blessed that we can help 100 of our partners meet the immense needs of children through this year’s grants,” said Kosair for Kids President Barry Dunn. “The Board of Directors did an outstanding job maximizing the impact of each dollar allocated.”
Last year, Kosair for Kids helped improve the lives of 260,948 children through Kosair Kids Grants. Dunn hopes to benefit at least that many children through these grants.