Highmark Foundation awards more than $1.1 million in grants to nonprofits in Pennsylvania and West Virginia

June 29, 2015 | Pittsburgh, Pa.

PITTSBURGH (June 29, 2015) —The Highmark Foundation has awarded $1,165,000 in grants to 11 organizations in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. These grants will support organizations working to improve the health and wellness of communities across our region.

The grantees and their grants are:

• American Cancer Society, Inc., $100,000
  Greene County
  Support the implementation of the Appalachia Community Empowerment and Equity Partnership, to address cancer screening disparities. The cancer screening rate here is significantly lower than nationwide screening rates.

• Catholic Charities Free Health Care Center, Inc., $100,000
  Allegheny County
  Implement the Continuum of Care model into the community, which provides integrated primary, specialty and dental care, as well as mental health services, patient education, physical therapy and pharmacy services to patients.

• Center for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention, $250,000
  Western and Central PA, statewide WV
  Expand capacity-building efforts for health care providers and other professionals with the intent of teaching them to recognize bullying, screen and intervene appropriately.

• Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit — Center for Safe Schools, $250,000
  Western and Central PA
  Provide training and technical assistance on bullying prevention to schools, parents and communities. Specifically address the bullying prevention and education needs of school districts in York, Reading and Erie, PA.

• The Children's Institute Women for a Healthy Environment Program, $75,000
  Allegheny County
  Support a community health conference that will address creating healthy homes, schools and workplaces.

• Force for Health Foundation, $20,000
  Western and Central PA
  Study childhood obesity trends in Pennsylvania, culminating with a September 2015 report that will help shed light on the effectiveness of the systems and strategies school districts use to address contemporary child and adolescent health problems.

• Highlands Hospital, $100,000
  Fayette County
  Provide women in Fayette and surrounding counties with a resource for complete, personalized outpatient health care, and to address the social, physical, emotional and health needs of girls and women ages 11 and older.

• Northern Area Multi-Service Center of Allegheny County, $70,000
  Allegheny County
  Help elderly patients discharged from Allegheny General Hospital and Jefferson Regional Hospital avoid readmission by monitoring their post-discharge care and providing nutritional support.

• Pennsylvania District Attorneys Institute, $50,000
  Western PA
  Assist police departments with the purchase of naloxone kits, to reduce the incidence of opioid overdoses.

• Three Rivers Mothers' Milk Bank, $100,000
  Allegheny County
  Raise awareness of the importance of the only breast milk bank in the region, which provides breast milk to infants who are in neonatal intensive care units (NICU), to help reduce morbidity and mortality rates.

• West Virginia Healthy Kids and Families Coalition, $50,000
  Statewide, WV
  Improve the health of people in West Virginia through the coordination of community-wide health improvement efforts to reduce the incidence and prevalence of chronic disease.

"Improving the health and wellness of our communities is a big task, and organizations can't do it alone," said Yvonne Cook, president, Highmark Foundation. "That's why the Foundation's support of these organizations is so important. By working together we can create a lasting impact, and be a strong force of positive change."

In 2014, the Highmark Foundation provided nearly $4 million in grants to support health-focused programs in western Pennsylvania, central Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley and West Virginia. In the last decade, the Foundation's giving has amounted to more than $100 million.

Contact:

Kelly DeAngelis
Highmark Foundation
302-421-2188
kelly.deangelis@highmarkhealth.org