HealthSpark Awards $670,000 to Support the Safety Net System

HealthSpark Foundation is pleased to share the grant recipients from the fall/ winter 2022 grantmaking round. This round awarded fourteen (14) grants to local nonprofit organizations under the Safety Net Fund totaling $370,000, and one (1) grant in support of human services advocacy work over the coming two years, for $300,000.

The Safety Net Fund in the fall offered a refreshed grant opportunity for local partners, with changes to the grant requirements from previous rounds based on evolving needs in the community and HealthSpark's own grantmaking journey. The Safety Net Fund provided general operating support for organizations that align with the Safety Net Initiative's vision of a resilient and financially sustainable safety net that allows anyone in Montgomery County to access high quality, coordinated, equitable, and culturally appropriate services no matter who they are, what they need, or where they live. Organizations were prioritized based on their ability to offer systems change strategies that create a more just and resilient system.

“Like many of our partners, HealthSpark Foundation's grantmaking approach continues to adapt to our local environment, needs, and lessons learned,” shared Emma Hertz, President, CEO. “We're pleased to offer our support for organizations that are making our safety net system stronger by bringing new solutions, new approaches, and more diverse perspectives to our traditional systems.”

In addition to the fourteen grants awarded under the Safety Net Fund, HealthSpark Foundation also awarded a second two-year grant to PA Health Access Network for the Here for Us Advocacy Coalition. The Here for Us Advocacy Coalition offers a common platform and organizing structure for advocates of the safety net system to mobilize for more effective, inclusive, and robust human services policies. Here for Us has served as a key driver for transparency in how the county awarded its American Rescue Plan Act Funds, as well as a vocal proponent for urgent action on the county's homelessness crisis. The coalition will continue to expand and deepen its advocacy work in the coming years.

The full list of fall/ winter 2022 grantees is below:

• ACLAMO Family Centers, $30,000.00. General Operating Support for delivery of programs.
• Along The Way , $30,000.00. The Pathway Project is a comprehensive anti-poverty, workforce development, child care and family support solution that engages all community stakeholder groups to the child care funding table. The revenue model requires the 4 main beneficiaries of poverty alleviation in communities to financially contribute to the cost of our in-home child care solution: employers, government, philanthropy, and parents, so as to disperse the cost burden of service provision.
• Consumer Satisfaction Team of Montgomery County, Inc., $30,000.00. The AdvocacyWorx program at HopeWorx provides peer-advocacy services to empower individuals to navigate the mental health system, the social safety net and the criminal justice system to find support that works for their specific needs. With this grant, AdvocacyWorx will build capacity to strengthen its partnerships and raise the voices of the people they support to advocate for system change to incorporate trauma informed care throughout the social safety net
• JEVS Human Services, $20,000.00. Funding in support of developing a Montgomery County-based adjudication diversion program for first-time, non-violent offenders arrested with intent to distribute drugs.
• Manna on Main Street, $30,000.00. Funding to expand Manna's capacity to effectively and efficiently store, provide and transport emergency food to more households in need, transforming the North Penn region's emergency food safety net system in the process
• Maternity Care Coalition, $30,000.00. General Operating support for Montco Mamas: Hope For All, Life For All
• MontCo Anti-Hunger Network (MAHN), $30,000.00. General Operating Support to continue to catalyze system changing practices that builds strategic partnerships to facilitate an effective and coordinated response to hunger in Montgomery County.
• Neighbors Helping Neighbors on the Main Line, $30,000.00. A grant in support of organizational capacity building.
• Pennsylvania Health Access Network (PHAN), $300,000.00. Here for Us Advocacy Coalition funding for 2023-2024 calendar years.
• Reality Speaking Inc., $20,000.00. Reality Speaking aka Reuniting Family Bail Fund (RFBF) will be debuting its live stream bi-weekly show highlighting the traumatic effects of incarceration, the cruel practice of pre-trial incarceration, courtwatch round table discussion and special guests sharing their experience with the criminal legal system.
• Senior Adult Activities Center of Montgomery County, $30,000.00. Funding in support of learning about the unmet need of older LGBTQ+ adults, the scale of that need, and programs/services this community seeks to support successful aging in place.
• SHARE Food Program, Inc, $30,000.00. Project to scale investment in the Lansdale warehouse facility and to strategically develop programs/services in collaboration with Montgomery County, MAHN, and Philabundance.
• The Philip Jaisohn Memorial Foundation, $25,000.00. Funding to build multilingual capacity to establish a central hub of services, information plus navigation capability to link the mainstream service providers and the Asian American ethnic communities with cultural sensitivity.
• Women's Center of Montgomery County, $25,000.00. Funding to implement, expand and enhance strategies for effective interventions with high-risk domestic violence victims.
• YWCA Tri-County Area, $10,000.00. General Operating Support to benefit the community wellness and education center.