Wheeling police have received more than $200,000 in state and federal grants to pay for traffic safety programs, counseling services for juveniles and outreach programs aimed at steering kids away from drugs and gangs.
More than $72,000 came from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, matched by more than $67,000 from the village for a traffic safety program that is in its fourth year at the Police Department.
The funds help cover the cost of roadside safety checks, child safety-seat inspections, impaired-driving awareness programs at Wheeling High School and beefed-up traffic patrols in school zones, said Tom Pilewski, who coordinates the program in Wheeling.
The department received more than $51,000 from a local law enforcement block grant from the U.S. Department of Justice for its youth-mentoring programs, and more than $9,000 from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority to cover the costs of a part-time social worker for at-risk kids.