Meadowlark House, SKDC 10-33 Foundation Receive CoBank Funding

Victory Electric congratulates Meadowlark House Child Advocacy Center and the Southwest Kansas-Dodge City 10-33 Foundation for each winning a 2025 CoBank Sharing Success grant. After evaluating the applications of 21 nonprofit organizations from our service area, the Victory Electric Board of Trustees selected Meadowlark House to receive a $23,000 grant and the SKDC 10-33 Foundation to receive a $7,000 grant, based on the amounts the organizations requested in their grant proposals. 

This annual grant opportunity is made possible by Victory Electric in partnership with CoBank, whose $6 million Sharing Success fund matches customer donations to charities across rural America. CoBank’s maximum grant award was raised to $15,000 per year in 2025 and is matched by Victory Electric for a total of $30,000 available to one or more selected recipients.

Meadowlark House

Meadowlark House Child Advocacy Center provides a supportive, child-friendly sanctuary for kids who have experienced abuse and neglect. Meadlowlark House’s services help reduce the trauma children face when sharing their abuse experiences with advocates and other professionals.

“We work closely with law enforcement, social services, medical personnel, and mental health professionals to create a coordinated response that prioritizes the well-being of the child,” Jill Henrichs noted in the nonprofit’s application.

Meadowlark House coordinates with outside agencies to conduct forensic interviews that are tailored to children’s age and developmental level. The coordinated services help protect children from further harm and ensure those responsible for hurting them can be held accountable. Meadowlark House also provides legal advocacy, locates safe housing when needed, and offers referrals for medical providers and mental health therapists specialize in treating trauma. 

CoBank Sharing Success Grant funding will be used to obtain and implement the Guardify Systems platform for conducting secure forensic interviews and to better coordinate Meadowlark House’s child advocacy services while ensuring compliance with state and federal regulations. The system will streamline case management, improve data security and enable seamless collaboration among child welfare professionals, law enforcement, and legal entities.

There is a pressing need for Meadowlark House’s services. In 2023 and 2024, the organization served 133 children across nine counties.

The grant will enable Meadowlark House to continue caring for neglected and abused children’s physical and emotional well-being and helping them to heal. 

To learn more about Meadowlark House, visit www.meadowlarkhouse.org.

SKDC 10-33 Foundation

The Southwest Kansas-Dodge City 10-33 Foundation provides crisis support, training and education to first responders, military personnel, communities and their families in rural Kansas. Law enforcement officers and other first responders experience a significant number of traumatic events during their careers. The group’s mission is to serve those who protect others when they need support themselves. 

Staffed by current and former first responders, military members and their family members, the group of “first responders to first responders” took its name from the radio code for "officer in distress." The 10-33 Foundation was formed in 2012, and the local team launched in 2023.

The SKDC 10-33 Foundation will use grant funds for crisis training, including a three-day Critical Incident Stress Management course in the fall for area first responders, school personnel and community volunteers to learn strategies for responding to trauma and critical incidents. 

“At the 10-33 Foundation, we are dedicated to giving back and building communities that are strong, resilient and never alone. This grant plays a crucial role in making that vision a reality,” said SKDC 10-33 Peer Support Team Lead Summer Rhodes.

The demand for the group to provide community mass briefings, critical incident defusings, debriefings and one-on-one crisis interventions continues to grow in the region. 

“Your generous support empowers the 10-33 Foundation to continue providing essential peer support, crisis response and mental health resources to first responders and community members when they need it most,” Rhodes said.

For more information, visit www.1033foundation.org.

CoBank and Victory Electric

In partnership with CoBank, Victory Electric has awarded $215,000 in Sharing Success grants to nonprofit organizations in its service area since 2012. The program is designed to celebrate the vital role that cooperatives play in individual communities across the country.

To learn more about the CoBank Sharing Success grant, visit victoryelectric.net/cobank-sharing-success-grant or email askcommunications@victoryelectric.net.