Dillon Davis

Battle Creek Enquirer

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation is giving $7.1 million to support Flint's recovery from its lead-in-water crisis, the foundation said Tuesday.

The Battle Creek-based foundation said the money will benefit agencies such as the Genesee County Health Department and the Flint Rising through Tides Foundation, which are assisting children and families impacted by the Flint water crisis. Much of the funding will be awarded to Flint-based organizations that work in health, education and poverty relief.

WKKF president and CEO La June Mongtomery Tabron said in a Tuesday news release the foundation stands with Flint as it recovers from the effects of lead contamination.

“We recognize this opportunity to join our philanthropic partners like the C.S. Mott Foundation and other partners," she said, "in helping ensure responsive health care, quality early education and an economically thriving city.”

The foundation has outlined four main areas of focus within the scope of the grants. It hopes to advance solutions affecting health, education and the economic future of the area's children; it wants to reduce and mitigate the risks of exposure to lead and other contaminants; it has set out to address "poverty and disinvestment" in Flint, particularly in primarily minority communities; and it wants to encourage community engagement to help Flint thrive now and in future generations.

Some of the funding — such as a $960,000 gift to the Regents of the University of California — is for improving children's access to safe drinking water in schools as well as in educational and recreational settings. Others, like its $800,000 donation to the Genesee County Health Department, are earmarked for hands-on work to improve access to health care services while identifying gaps in the process.

Organizations receiving funding from the Kellogg Foundation are:

Flint Rising through Tides Foundation, $250,000

Genesee County Community Action Resource Department, $500,000

Genesee County Health Department, $800,000

Genesee County Hispanic Latino Collaborative, $110,000

Michigan Faith in Action, $250,000

Mott Community College, $499,960

St. John Hospital and Medical Center, $112,000

Regents of the University of California – Agriculture and Natural Resources, $960,000

Regents of the University of Michigan-Flint, $600,000

Community Foundation of Greater Flint, $500,000

Environmental Defense Fund Inc., $1,800,000

Fair Food Network, $190,000

American Public Health Association, $400,000

University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, $96,000

Horsley Witten Group Inc., $36,800

The Flint water crisis is the result of a cost-cutting decision to switch the area's water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River. The water was not properly treated and corroded the city's aging pipes, sending lead into the water supply. The disaster has affected the area's drinking water for about two years, as children and families have been exposed to lead poisoning.

It is still not safe to drink the water without a filter.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette recently filed charges against six state employees, bringing the total charged to nine, for their roles that led to the crisis.

"Some people failed to act, others minimized harm done and arrogantly chose to ignore data, some intentionally altered figures ... and covered up significant health risks," he said in a July 29 news conference. "The result was water was poisoned."

Contact Dillon Davis at 269-966-0698 or dwdavis@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DillonDavis