OWATONNA, MN, March 11, 2026 – Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) recently approved five grants totaling $25,000 for projects that support youth mental health in rural Minnesota.
SMIF awarded the grants based on ideas shared by southern Minnesota residents during the 2025 Rural Voice conversation, a discussion on mental health in rural communities. Participants shared their concerns about various mental health topics which helped shape the projects selected for funding.
The 2026 Rural Voice grant award recipients are:
- $5,000 to Austin Aspires to support personnel and essential materials for the Aspiring Leaders of Tomorrow program, connecting youth with coaches and resources, and to increase involvement with the Mental Health Ambassador program, elevating youth voices, peer-to-peer support and mental health awareness across the school community.
- $5,000 to Faribault Youth Empowerment to empower youth through community-based, culturally tailored support, helping to foster education, mental wellness and social connectedness.
- $5,000 to Honoring Dakota Project in Red Wing to support and expand programs, including youth lifeways sessions, paid internships and youth-led community engagement opportunities. These opportunities will help Indigenous youth build relationships with elders and knowledge keepers, contribute meaningfully to community events and share their voices through cultural expression, storytelling and public engagement.
- $5,000 to Mankato Youth Place Inc to fund a newly established mental health specialist position that will provide direct support to youth, while also equipping staff and families with the tools needed to navigate mental health challenges.
- $5,000 to Our Voices in Winona to fund general operating expenses and basic needs support for participants. Our Voices is an organization dedicated to supporting youth of color in Winona by uplifting youth voices and experiences and providing a place for mutual support and the celebration of cultural identity through artistic expression, group activities and community education.
“Youth mental health is a pressing issue that rose to the top in our Rural Voice conversation,” shared Benya Kraus, SMIF president and CEO. “Each of these programs brings its own powerful approach to supporting youth mental health. Some are focused on identity and belonging and others offer direct mental health support. All create essential spaces for youth to connect, express their feelings, process their experiences and show up as their full, authentic selves.”
About Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation
Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF), a donor-supported foundation, invests for economic growth in south central and southeastern Minnesota, serving a region that includes 20 counties, 175 communities and one Native nation. The Foundation has provided more than $178 million in grants, loans and programming within the region during the past 40 years. SMIF’s key interests include entrepreneurship, Early Childhood development and community vitality. To learn more about our work and mission, visit www.smifoundation.org.
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