Kansas Grantmakers in Health award Stafford County Economic Development $10,000 in memory of former Kansas Health Foundation CEO Steve Coen

Stafford County Economic Development is honored to receive a $10,000 grant from the Kansas Grantmakers in Health (KGIH). This gift is in memory of KGIH’s longtime colleague and friend Steve Coen, former CEO of Kansas Heath Foundation, for his tremendous impact in helping to address come of the most pressing health challenges facing our state.

Steve was a longtime member of KGIH, a network of the state’s six healthcare foundations. KGIH collaborates on public policies, grants, and projects with statewide reach and shared concerns.

Stafford County Economic Development has done work to address food insecurity and access to healthy foods. One early project involved securing a grant to fund 5 high tunnels and provide technical assistance to growers. The Healthy Communities Initiative helped bring back the farmer’s market. The organization was also instrumental in building a new grocery store in St. John (Steve’s hometown). The public-private partnership has helped the community maintain a local grocery store and improve the resiliency of the local food system. More recently, the organization helped administer SPARK funds to local food banks and assisted with applications to the Kansas Healthy Food Initiative.

You can find the full press release here.