Franciscan Health Foundation awards $450,000 in SIPP grants

The Franciscan Health Foundation, the fundraising affiliate of Franciscan Health, recently awarded more than $450,000 in community health improvement grants through its Social Impact Partnership Program (SIPP). Fifty-seven non-profits located throughout Franciscan Health’s Indiana service regions and south suburban Chicago were selected from 105 applications to receive funding of up to $10,000 per organization.

Recipient Organizations

Grant recipients in Western Indiana are: Bauer Family Resources, Inc.; Caregiver Companion; Lafayette Catholic School System; Community Action Program, Inc.; Food Finders; GracePoint Resource Center; Jasper County Sherriff; Lafayette Neighborhood Housing Services; LTHC Homeless Services; Montgomery County Youth Services Bureau; Pam’s Promise; Rensselaer Area Ministerial Association; and United Way of Greater Lafayette.

A Collaborative Process

“We are thrilled to work with so many worthy organizations in our service area,” said Caitlin Leahy, senior vice president for Franciscan Health Foundation and Community Health Improvement. “These non-profits have demonstrated great creativity and determination in addressing pressing community health and wellness issues in their areas. We’re confident their efforts will generate some great results.”

SIPP is a community health enrichment program sponsored by Franciscan Health, which establishes, and builds upon, partnerships with non-profit health and human service agencies that provide services in at-risk communities served by Franciscan Health. The goal is to foster long-term relationships with community providers to better address significant health issues among vulnerable populations.

A committee comprised of local Franciscan healthcare leadership selected the fund recipients and amounts. The recipient organizations received funding based on program applications demonstrating their ability to address priority health needs and health equity based on Franciscan’s Community Health Needs Assessment process. Identified priority health issues are: 1) Access to Healthcare; 2) Food Insecurity; 3) Housing Stability; 4) Social Bridging; 5) Mental Health; and 6) Substance Abuse.

Recipient organizations will collaborate with Franciscan Health Foundation’s Community Health Improvement Team to ensure program effectiveness that meet the grant application’s stated goals. They must participate in program orientation and will submit progress reports at 6-month and 1-year intervals. Participation in the reporting process is required for consideration of any future funding or assistance.

Working Toward a Healthier Future

One recipient organization, Pam’s Promise in Montgomery County, has important plans for its funding. Executive Director Susan Zachary said: “Pam’s Promise Transitional Housing Corp. is grateful for the SIPP grant as it provides funding for case management for homeless women who come into its program. At Pam’s Promise, Case Managers work side by side with the women in its program to help them transition out of homelessness into stable sustainable housing by teaching life skills and providing necessary tools to help each woman be successful. Having that person to walk with them through the hard times is vital for their success.”

Another recipient organization, Gracepoint Resource Center in Rensselaer, also will make productive use of its SIPP grant. Executive Director Brian Hannon said: “Thank you for your generous grant to support GracePoint Resource Center’s community counseling program! Your generosity is a huge blessing to our organization and will allow us to continue to offer hope and help to community members at no cost to them. We will use it to continue to build our counseling program and our other programs so we can help more individuals and families in our community to bear the challenges of their everyday lives.”

Franciscan Health Foundation will announce the benchmark dates for 2022 SIPP grant applications, review and awards early next year.

About Franciscan Health

The Franciscan Alliance healthcare ministry began in Lafayette, Ind., in 1875. Today, Franciscan Alliance is one of the largest Catholic health care systems in the Midwest with 12 hospital campuses, more than 19,000 employees and a number of nationally recognized Centers of Health Care Excellence. Hospitals include: Franciscan Health Carmel; Franciscan Health Crawfordsville; Franciscan Health Crown Point; Franciscan Health Dyer; Franciscan Health Hammond; Franciscan Health Indianapolis; Franciscan Health Lafayette; Franciscan Health Michigan City; Franciscan Health Mooresville; Franciscan Health Munster; Franciscan Health Olympia Fields (IL); and Franciscan Health Rensselaer.