News release from the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation:
The St. Joseph Community Health Foundation Announces $517,182 in Local Grants
(January 7, 2015) – More than $500,000 in grants have been given to local organizations to improve the health and
wellness of vulnerable and low-income populations of Allen County. The grant money was provided by the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation, a ministry sponsored by the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ.“Allen County is blessed with many outstanding organizations that are improving the health and wellness of individuals in our community,” said Meg Distler, Executive Director of the Foundation. “Our mission is to continue the legacy of our sponsor by supporting organizations that care for the poor and underserved by helping them access quality medical care and wellness resources.”
The Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ has had an active ministry in this community since 1868, and, through the Foundation, has invested more than $16.9M through 1,085 grants into 186 Allen County agencies since the sale of St. Joseph Medical Center in 1998. All grants are focused on helping to establish and maintain centers of excellence for the delivery of mental, physical and spiritual health care to the low-income and underserved in our community. Moreover, these grants are intended to build programming to address gaps that prevent individuals from attaining effective care that supports health and wellness. The funded agencies also reflect the shared values of the Foundation’s sponsor, especially showing dignity and respect for all and carrying on the mission of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ in the area.
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 November 2015 through the end of the year:
Assuring a Quality, Affordable Healthcare Network (Unrestricted Funds)
Matthew 25 Health & Dental Clinic – $105,000.00
For the full-time Dental Director and part-time dentist position.Matthew 25 Health & Dental Clinic – $125,000.00
For the Medical Director’s salary.Super Shots – $50,000.00
For immunizations at Anthony Medical Center and Anthis Career Center.Carriage House – $30,000.00 (in 2015 and 2016)
To assist adults with limited resources to reclaim their lives from the devastation of serious mental illness by providing unique and effective Clubhouse Model psychosocial rehabilitation.
Connecting People to Health & Wellness Care (Unrestricted Funds)
SoulMedic – RemedyLIVE – $30,000.00
To grow the SoulMedic team, improve their technology and increase their ability to help teens and young adults find hope, through technology, amidst their struggle.Allen County Jail Chaplaincy – $15,000.00
For educational and spiritual programs for the inmates of the Allen County Jail, to help them to understand the changes they need to make in their lives and help to equip them to make those
changes.YWCA Northeast Indiana / Hope House – $18,750.00
To provide on-site recovery group counseling and parenting classes to chemically dependent women in a residential program and Family Group therapeutic support to residents and their family members.
Integrating Refugee & Immigrant Health (Unrestricted Funds)
Catholic Charities – $8,500.00
To help coordinate services related to health screenings and immediate healthcare for primary and secondary refugees.Center for Nonviolence – $17,500.00
To provide health education, case management, medical translation and other related services to non-English speaking populations who have significant barriers to health services.Lutheran Agency for Missions to Burmese (L.A.M.B.) – $20,000.00
To provide medical advocacy for Burmese individuals.
Promoting Life-Affirming Prenatal & Infant Care (Unrestricted Funds)
A Hope Center – $45,000.00
To support and enhance the ongoing provision of quality, limited medical services (nurse-administered pregnancy tests, STI testing, limited first trimester ultrasounds, and prenatal vitamins).Lutheran Social Services – $10,000.00
To enhance the health and wellness of teen parents and their children who participate in the Education Creates Hope and Opportunity (ECHO) program.Frederick J. Pfeiffer Fund – in Honor of Charles F. and Henrietta Eckart Pfeiffer – for Medical and
Surgical EquipmentFort Wayne Community Schools – $10,932.00
To purchase the early interventions combo kit, including vision and hearing screening equipment, to be utilized in the Family Resource Center to screen students new to the school district.Fort Wayne Sexual Assault Treatment Center – $580.00
To purchase a VHS to DVD converter, cart, DVDs, and flat screen TV with built-in DVD player for conversion of all VHS tapes to DVDs for training purposes.
Blessed Catherine Kasper Award for Outstanding Service to the Poor
Heart of the City Mission Foundation – $1,500.00
For The Wash Room, an initiative to help families living in poverty have clean clothes and bedding, nurturing the health, hygiene, and economic well-being of marginalized families.Homebound Meals – $1,500.00
To help fund the operations budget for delivering hot, nutritional meals to the homebound community of Fort Wayne.
About the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation
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. Part of the HEAL program brings fresh produce to food desert areas of Fort Wayne, and the program is sponsoring healthy cooking classes at Redemption House, Charis House, and Vincent Village. HEAL is also supporting community gardens at McCormick Place Apartments and Redemption House.
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