On Monday, December 7, 2020, the Board of Trustees of the Williamsburg Health Foundation (WHF) approved the second and final round of grants in 2020 for the Foundation.  “The grants we are announcing reflect both the ongoing and the evolving needs of our community.  Our partners are working hard to address these needs during incredibly challenging times,” said Carol L. Sale, WHF President and CEO.

Grants include four behavioral-health services grants.  The Center for Child and Family Services will receive a new grant for $103,000 to provide trauma-informed assessments along with individual and group counseling for adults who are perpetrators of intimate-partner violence and are struggling with substance abuse. “Often substance-use disorders and domestic violence are treated separately,” said Sale, “Our partners at the Center understand the critical connection between the two.” Other behavioral services grants include grants for family therapy, maternal mental health, and a school-based mental health program. “We know that the COVID-19 pandemic is causing toxic stress and mental health challenges for so many,” said Sale. “We believe all our partners working in this area, including those who received grants earlier this year, can make a meaningful difference.”

Toxic stress and the lifelong impacts of trauma are themes in new grants.  Along with other communities in Virginia and throughout the US, Greater Williamsburg has created a Trauma-Informed Care Network (TICN).  Over 75 individuals from nonprofits, localities, and businesses have come together around the mission of “supporting a trauma-aware, resilient and compassionate community.”

“This is a fantastic example of multiple sectors and organizations working with a common goal,” said Sale.  A new grant for $30,000 managed through the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula will support a project coordinator to oversee the strategic planning process and the ongoing administration of the organization.

Another category of programs which fit in a “healthy eating and active living” area of funding involve people gathering in groups.  “We know these programs will not be able to go on right away as planned, but we want to give our grantees the best possible chance to get back into normal operations as soon as possible,” said Lou F. Rossiter, Trustee and Board Chair.

Earlier this year, when COVID-19 restrictions began, the Foundation unrestricted over 2.6 million dollars granted in 2019 which meant its grantees could use the money to best meet the needs of their agencies during the pandemic. “Through that action of unrestricting grant funding, the Williamsburg Health Foundation may have saved agencies from laying off staff or, even, from closing.  We’re proud of that accomplishment. We don’t want the pandemic to mean the loss of nonprofit agencies or programs critical to the long-term health of this community,” said Rossiter

The Williamsburg Health Foundation was founded in 1996 with proceeds from the partnership between Sentara Healthcare and the former Williamsburg Community Hospital. The foundation has a vision of “individuals making healthy choices with health opportunity for all.”  For information on grants from the Williamsburg Health Foundation, including how to apply for a grant, visit williamsburghealthfoundation.org/grants-center.  Additional grants made in December are attached here.

“As I say with every grant round, and it is more true now than ever, we need everyone to participate in making ours a healthy community.  We need to do everything we can to remain close as a community even at a distance and to support one another.  Call your neighbor, send a card or an email, make a donation to a nonprofit organization, volunteer if you can,” said Sale.

Grants Approved at WHF Board Of Trustees Meeting December 7, 2020

Some things are worth celebrating.  This community is one of them. 

2020 has been a year of many challenges.  At the Williamsburg Health Foundation, we have had the privilege of observing how community organizations and individuals have helped people living in Greater Williamsburg during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

As Mr. Rogers said, “Look for the helpers.” This video captures many of the helpers in our community, but not all.  We only hope we have captured the spirit of how we have remained close as a community even as we had to keep distant from each other.

We know COVID-19 and humankind’s battle with it is not over.  But, let us celebrate the spirit of community in Greater Williamsburg. 

Enjoy!

In recognition of Governor Northam’s decision to make Juneteenth a holiday for our Commonwealth, Williamsburg Health Foundation will close on Friday,  June 19^th to honor and celebrate of the freedom of people of African-American decent from slavery on this date in 1865.  WHF recognizes the imperative to address the long-standing issues of racial disparity in our country.

On Monday, June 1, 2020, the Williamsburg Health Foundation’s (WHF) Board of Trustees approved $3,453,500 dollars in grants.

“Whether or not there is a health emergency like COVID-19, organizations supported by Williamsburg Health Foundation work every single day to make our community healthier,” said president and CEO, Carol L. Sale.  “Our grants remain consistent with our vision of individuals making healthy choices in a community with health opportunity for all.”

“Many of our grantee partners are vulnerable to the economic downturn. Donors may not have resources to share with nonprofit agencies in the same way they have in the past few years. As always, this Foundation is proud that through our grants, we can provide support of staff salaries and operations at these organizations,” said Sale.

In April, Williamsburg Health Foundation unrestricted millions of dollars of already-awarded grants to allow agencies the flexibility to pivot their operations as needed.  “We have great faith in our partner agencies,” explained Sale.  “They know best how to manage their money in a crisis.”

“We have been working closely with our grantee partners to make sure they have what they need during this crisis,” said Allison Brody, director of community engagement.  “They tell us the best thing we can do for them in both the short- and long-term is to provide consistent and transparent grant-making.”

In this first grant round of 2020, WHF granted $575,000 for the provision of behavioral healthcare, $850,000 for advanced primary care and chronic disease management, $133,500 for medication access and other health services, $697,000 for school-based wellness, and $720,000 for two-generational, family-centered services.  A complete list of grants and agencies is appended here.

“In the past few months, our staff and trustees have been truly inspired by our grantee partners and their creativity, adaptability, and collaborative spirit.  We have seen clinical staff meeting patients in parking lots when telemedicine was not enough.  We have seen agencies serving in new ways.   For example, the Arc of Greater Williamsburg has used their vans to collect food from food drives and deliver emergency food to homebound individuals. Those vans are typically used to transport adults with disabilities,” said Brody.

“Our staff has been hard at work, during this crisis to provide collaborative spaces online so agencies can quickly learn from each other and meet emergent community challenges in larger, systematic ways. We are a collaborative community; we work best when we all work together,” said Sale.

Since its inception, the Williamsburg Health Foundation has granted 89 million dollars to improve the health of the Williamsburg community. For information on grants from the Williamsburg Health Foundation, including how to apply for a grant, visit williamsburghealthfoundation.org/grants-before-applying