Lost&Found receives $100,000 grant to support mobile app development
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Lost&Found is one of seven South Dakota nonprofit organizations receiving funds from the South Dakota Community Foundation (SDCF) as part of its Beyond Idea Grant (BIG) program. Lost&Found will receive $100,000 to develop a mobile application that will support Lost&Found’s mental health and suicide prevention work among youth and young adults in South Dakota.
The BIG program supports community-based problem-solving efforts in South Dakota and is offered in partnership with the Bush Foundation.
“Our awardees in this round are addressing important issues across our state, from mental health, transportation, homeownership, education, and leadership development,” says Ginger Niemann, SDCF Senior Program Officer. “Funds from our BIG program will help these nonprofits design and test ideas to move their unique efforts forward.”
SDCF received 89 applications in the first round of the BIG program for 2023.
Lost&Found has received a number of grants from the South Dakota Community Foundation, starting in 2017.
“We are deeply grateful to our partners at the South Dakota Community Foundation for their sustained, critical investments in suicide prevention efforts over the past 6 years,” said Lost&Found CEO/Executive Director Erik Muckey. “This latest investment, through the Beyond Innovation Grant, will ensure that peer mental health supports are widely available and accessible throughout South Dakota. The support of the SDCF is saving lives each day.”
Lost&Found is receiving $100,000 to develop, launch, and fully integrate a mobile application that will increase the impact of mental health and suicide prevention programs happening on college and high school campuses in key communities across South Dakota. The goal of the project is to do two key things:
- It will integrate with existing in-person resilience-building programs at several campuses across the state to increase the reach of peer support programs, build data-gathering capacity for mental health-related work, and give students access to critical resources both on campus and within their communities.
- It will allow students easy access to potentially life-saving mental health education and support.
This app will be developed with South Dakota student developers and testers, increasing its impact through a student-driven program.
