More than $568,600 in grants has been awarded by the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation, a ministry sponsored by the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, to local organizations to improve the health and wellness of the vulnerable and low-income populations of Allen County.
“We are honored to provide these grants to enable dedicated professionals to care for and help heal those most in need in our community.” According to Meg Distler, Executive Director, “This enables us to continue the important work of the Catholic Sisters, the Poor Handmaids whose service in Allen County dates back to 1868”
The Foundation has invested more than $17.9M through grants into 204 Allen County agencies serving the local community since the sale of St. Joseph Medical Center in 1998. All grants are focused to help establish and maintain centers of excellence for the delivery of health services to the low-income and underserved in the Fort Wayne community. The funded agencies also reflect the shared values of both the Foundation and its sponsor, especially showing dignity and respect for all peoples residing in the greater Fort Wayne community.
The St. Joseph Community Health Foundation focuses their Community Impact into four main areas: Assuring a Quality; Affordable Healthcare Network, Connecting
People to Health & Wellness Care, Integrating Refugee & Immigrant Health, and Promoting Life-Affirming Prenatal & Infant Care.
The following grants are among those awarded from June 2016 through the end of the year:
Assuring a Quality, Affordable Healthcare Network (Unrestricted Funds)
Matthew 25 Dental, $110,000.00
Matthew 25 Medical, $130,000.00
Super Shot Inc., $130,000.00
Carriage House, $25,000.00
Integrating Refugee & Immigrant Health (Unrestricted Funds)
Center for Nonviolence, $17,500.00
Lutheran Agency for Missions to Burmese (LAMB, $20,000.00
Promoting Life-Affirming Prenatal & Infant Care (Unrestricted Funds)
A Hope Center, $40,000.00
Lutheran Social Services, $20,000.00
Connecting People to Health &Wellness Care (Unrestricted Funds)
Allen County Jail Chaplaincy, $ 5,000.00
Brightpoint, $700
SoulMedic-RemedyLIVE, $10,000
Turnstone Center, $15,000.00
Inner City Hope Corp. (dba Miss Virginia’s Food Pantry, $10,000.00
Schneider Fellowship
Cancer Services of Northeast Indiana, $2,000.00
Super Shot Inc., $2,000.00
Temporary Restricted Funds
Bridge of Grace Compassionate Ministries Center, $8,000.00
Temporary Restricted-Tippmann
Fort Wayne Community Schools, $4,400.00
Mental Health America of Northeast Indiana, $10,000.00
Kasper Fund (Unrestricted)
Associated Churches of Fort Wayne and Allen County, $1,500.00
Early Childhood Alliance, $ 1,500.00
Mustard Seed Furniture Bank, $1,500.00
Neighborhood Link Fort Wayne, $ 1,500.00
St. Mary’s Catholic Church, $1,500.00
YWCA Northeast Indiana, Inc., $1,500.00
About the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation
The Mission:
The St. Joseph Community Health Foundation, sponsored by the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, stewards resources to:
Respond to community needs with grants;
Leverage collaboration with community partners;
Engage in transformational initiatives.
We serve the poor in body, mind and spirit to achieve quality health and wellness, focusing on the community of Allen County, Indiana and may respond to needs among other underserved populations.
In addition to providing grants, the Foundation also provides programming to address gaps in services, including a resource directory of Allen County’s low-cost, quality healthcare resources. The Community Health Resource Directory is also available online at www.HealthcareDirectory.org. Two new directories in 2016 include a Pregnancy Resource Directory and a Refugee & Immigrant Directory. The Foundation is also currently partnering with Parkview Health to provide the community with the H.E.A.L. (Healthy Eating Active Living) program.
