OHIO LIONS FOUNDATION

PROCEDURES FOR DISASTER RELIEF GRANTS


(Revised 5/21/99)

Submitting Disaster Relief Grant Requests:

The Foundation is proud of its record of responding quickly to approve grants for victims of floods, tornados and other natural disasters striking Ohio. Requests for disaster relief grants may be presented either through the district trustee or by contacting directly the O.L.F.'s Secretary as follows:

Jeffrey W. Brantner, Secretary
Ohio Lions Foundation
1720 Zollinger Road, Second Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43221
(614) 459-5200 Ext 230
(614) 459-1151
Email: jwbrantner@rpbke.com

Grants up to $5,000 may be approved by the Foundation's Executive Committee; grants in excess of $5,000 must be approved by the Foundation's Board of Trustees; provided, however, that the maximum amount of such grants awarded by the Executive Committee may not exceed in the aggregate the sum of $35,000 in any single fiscal year.

Administration of grants:

Once a disaster relief grant has been approved by the Foundation, the local Lions Club which has been designated to administer the grant needs to appoint a Disaster Relief Advisory Committee. The Secretary of the Foundation should immediately be notified of the appointment of this committee and be provided with samples of the signatures of the authorized signers. As a condition to the awarding of a grant, the requesting club will be asked to acknowledge in writing that it has read, understands and agrees to abide by the specific terms of the grant. Any expenditures not covered by the terms of the grant, unless specifically approved in advance by the Foundation, will not be paid out of the grant, and will be the responsibility of the requesting club.

Items covered by grants:

Grants may be used for the purchase of the following items:
? Food (but not tobacco products, cigarettes, or alcohol)
? Clothing, blankets, bedding (including sheets, bed covers, pillows and pillow cases, but not mattresses)
? Basic eating utensils (but only in the case of a serious health risk, and not to exceed $50.00 per family unit)
? Medical care and supplies
? Eye glasses
? Prescription drugs
? Sanitation and cleaning (such as disinfectants, cleaning solutions, mops, hoses, etc.)
? Temporary shelter.
? Materials to temporarily secure the home, including tarps and plywood to close openings to keep out the weather.

Items specifically not covered by grants:

Grants may not be used for the purchase of major appliances, carpeting, household furnishings, and home repairs (except for materials to temporarily secure the home).

Disaster Relief Application Forms and Vouchers:

Sample Application forms and Vouchers may be obtained from the Secretary. The local Lions Club may want to reproduce the application form on its letterhead.

The local Disaster Relief Advisory Committee should contact local merchants such as groceries, convenience stores, opticians, dentists, discount stores, etc. to make arrangements for them to honor vouchers issued by the Committee.

Applicants for relief should be asked to complete and sign an application. The application form to be completed by the disaster victims may be obtained from the Secretary. The committee should then interview the applicants and make appropriate investigations. The results of the interview - investigation as well as the action taken by the committee should be entered on the reverse side of the application.

Vouchers should be sequentially numbered. The voucher number(s) and amounts should be listed on the reverse side of the application. The merchant/provider should be instructed to return his invoice together with a copy of the voucher to an address for the Committee. Once the Committee has determined that the merchant's invoice is proper, the invoice, voucher, and application should be returned to the Secretary of the Foundation.

As an alternative to using vouchers, in several recent disasters the Foundation has issued Kroger prepaid cards which are computed coded by Kroger so that they may only be used for qualifying items (no tobacco, liquor or lottery tickets).