Grantee Spotlight: Triangle Stepping Stones

Jan 5, 2026 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: Triangle Stepping Stones

By: WHF Staff

Tucked off the intersection of Route 199 and Jamestown Road in Williamsburg, Triangle Stepping Stones offers a welcoming space for 12-Step recovery groups to gather. Nearly 25 meetings are hosted in their facility each week to address a range of recovery needs across the community. For individuals seeking support throughout their recovery journeys, this space serves as a refuge and a place to gather, where one can find connection and hope as they share their experiences and heal alongside others facing similar challenges.

Substance Use Disorders are characterized by impairment (including health, functional, and/or social issues) caused by repeated use of alcohol or other drugs. A 2023 report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that 19.1% of Americans aged 12+ met the criteria for needing treatment within the previous year. Local concerns mirror these trends. Residents from Williamsburg, James City County, and York County identified alcohol addiction and illicit drug use as the primary community health concern for adults in the Hampton and Peninsula Health Department’s 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment. These findings highlight the importance of maintaining accessible, community-based recovery supports.

Ensuring Accessible Recovery Support

Evidence reveals that Alcoholics Anonymous provides effective recovery support, performing as well as clinical treatment in the short term and often leading to better long-term outcomes. For those benefits to reach everyone who seeks support, people need to be able to enter and move through the space with ease. Triangle Stepping Stones recently purchased the building they had been renting since 2012. After the purchase, their board determined that upgrades were needed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Many attendees rely on mobility aids such as walkers or wheelchairs, so planned renovations include an entrance ramp, widened doorways, a fully accessible restroom, and paved parking lots for safer access. Improving physical accessibility strengthens the reach of recovery support and reduces barriers for community members who rely on peer-based programs.

Williamsburg Health Foundation (WHF) Support

The aim of Triangle Stepping Stones to provide a safe space for 12-Step groups to hold healing and supportive meetings for individuals seeking help with recovery aligns with WHF’s strategic focus. Their work contributes to the Foundation’s efforts to increase access to care and supportive services. The Foundation has contributed to Triangle Stepping Stones’ mission through two grants totaling $86,960 since 2025. To learn more about Triangle Stepping Stones, please visit their website https://trianglesteppingstones.com/.

WHF is an independent private health foundation with the mission to enhance health in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $119 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.

Grantee Spotlight: Williamsburg Faith in Action

Dec 1, 2025 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: Williamsburg Faith in Action

By: WHF Staff

For many older adults, staying independent and living in their own homes is a high priority, but without the support of nearby family or friends, aging in place can be challenging. In Greater Williamsburg, where one in five older adults lives alone, Williamsburg Faith in Action (WFIA) fills the gap for those without family nearby. WFIA makes aging in place more accessible by pairing volunteers with eligible older adults aged 60 and older to provide support services for transportation, household and yard chores, and social engagement.

Transportation Services

Transportation is WFIA’s most frequently used service, accounting for nearly 70% of all client requests. Trained volunteers take recipients to non-emergency medical appointments, legal services, the grocery store, or local errands. Along with a ride, volunteers offer social connections and build relationships with their care receivers. In 2024, WFIA’s 132 dedicated volunteers provided over 2,100 rides to 131 individuals.

In-Home Support Services

Through the In-Home Support Services Program, WFIA connects volunteers with care receivers who need a helping hand with daily tasks. These in-home supports range from food deliveries to helping to rake leaves in the fall. In 2024, WFIA’s volunteers provided 2,199 in-home support services to 126 older adults across Greater Williamsburg. These supports enable our older friends and neighbors to safely live independently.

Williamsburg Health Foundation (WHF) Support

Williamsburg Faith in Action’s focus on service to older adults aligns with WHF’s strategic plan. Their transportation and in-home support services contribute to the Foundation’s goal of targeting behavioral and social risk factors that influence the health of individuals throughout the life span. The Foundation has supported WFIA’s mission through 50 grants totaling $1.13 million since 2002. To learn more about WFIA’s service to older adults in the Greater Williamsburg community, please visit their website https://wfia.org/.

WHF is an independent private health foundation with the mission to collaborate, innovate, and invest to impact systems that improve the health and well-being of individuals living in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $116 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.

Grantee Spotlight: Williamsburg House of Mercy

Oct 27, 2025 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: Williamsburg House of Mercy

By: WHF Staff

After 41 years as a Sisters of Mercy school teacher, Sister Mary Berenice Eltz decided to shift her focus to serve people with low incomes and experiencing hardship. As a parish minister for the St. Olaf and St. Bede communities, she touched the lives of many people in Williamsburg, Virginia. Her legacies of dedication and service to individuals and families in need continue today at the Williamsburg House of Mercy.

Williamsburg House of Mercy (WHOM), located in the heart of Williamsburg, believes mercy is a verb. Specifically, mercy is an action that gives comfort and hope to people who are experiencing hardship. Their focus includes addressing food insecurity, providing Outreach Financial Assistance, managing the Harbor Day Shelter, and operating the Hope Pregnancy Center. These services impact the lives of many of the approximately 14% of Greater Williamsburg residents living below the poverty line and the 28% – 35% of households that are Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.

Addressing Food Insecurity

Healthy People 2030 aims to improve health by promoting healthy eating and increasing access to nutritious foods. Following the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which promotes a balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, can help individuals maintain good health. On the other hand, food insecurity can have significant impacts on a person’s long-term health and is associated with diet-related chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and obesity. According to WHOM’s latest Impact Report, they helped improve access to nutritious foods and combat food insecurity in Greater Williamsburg by providing meals to more than 2,400 households and serving nearly 10,300 meals at the Community Kitchen.

Williamsburg Health Foundation (WHF) Support

Williamsburg House of Mercy’s focus on food insecurity aligns with WHF’s strategic plan. The weekday community kitchen and food distribution programs contribute to the Foundation’s vision of individuals making healthy choices in a community with health opportunities for all. The Foundation has supported WHOM’s mission through 17 grants totaling $256,000 since 2016. To learn more about WHOM’s service to the community, please visit their website https://williamsburghouseofmercy.org/.

WHF is an independent private health foundation with the mission to collaborate, innovate, and invest to impact systems that improve the health and well-being of individuals living in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $116 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.

Grantee Spotlight: Colonial Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Youth Mentoring Program

Sep 29, 2025 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: Colonial Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Youth Mentoring Program

By: WHF Staff

When Robin Thrall decided to become a foster parent 15 years ago, she couldn’t have known how many lives, including her own, would be changed. A single mother with one biological daughter, Robin felt the desire to have more children. Learning she was able to adopt as a single parent, Robin began the process of becoming a therapeutic foster parent through James City County’s Department of Social Services. She welcomed children in need of love and stability into her life, heart, and home, eventually adopting four.

Many foster and adopted children face a challenging journey toward stability and healing. Through Robin’s training and independent study, she learned the value of having positive role models and mentors for her children. She turned to Colonial CASA to help find mentors.

For Robin’s son Kenny, being paired with a mentor through Colonial CASA’s Youth Mentoring Program in Williamsburg, VA, has been life-changing. His mentor meets with him twice a week to lift weights, practice healthy eating, and even shop together for nutritious foods. More than just fitness lessons, these visits have given Kenny something positive to focus on as he navigates the grief of losing his family. Kenny and his mentor have formed an almost sibling-like bond.

Robin has many stories of how the volunteer mentors at Colonial CASA have influenced her children’s lives. Each child’s mentor provides them with new experiences, fresh perspectives, and someone who shows up just for them. These one-on-one connections enable each of her children to expand their experiences beyond their home. “I wish everyone, at every age, every situation, could have a mentor,” Robin says.

Youth Mentoring and HEAL

In 2022, Colonial CASA launched the Youth Mentoring Program to connect trained, adult mentors with youth aged 10-18. Navigating the adolescent years can be a difficult time for both youth and parents, and the program offers support to address these challenges. Mentoring has been shown to have a positive effect on children’s emotional well-being. Adult mentors provide guidance, resources, and support in various aspects of a youth’s life, including emotional and educational support, and teaching valuable life skills. According to Mentoring.org, these relationships benefit the youth and have a positive impact on the adult mentor.

To make the Youth Mentoring Program physically beneficial for participants, Colonial CASA introduced the Healthy Eating and Active Living (HEAL) Colonial CASA program. HEAL encourages each mentee/mentor to incorporate physical activity into each weekly meeting. Colonial CASA provides participants with memberships to the JCC Recreation Center to reduce financial or weather barriers to being physically active.

WHF’s Continued Support

Colonial CASA’s HEAL program aligns with WHF’s strategic plan. The program contributes to the Foundation’s vision of individuals making healthy choices in a community with health opportunities for all, and the goal of targeting behavioral and social risk factors that influence the health of individuals across the life span. The Foundation has supported Colonial CASA’s work through 23 grants totaling more than $257,000 since 1999.

The account used in this article was adapted from Inside Look: Parent Shares Mentorship Impacts, a summary of an interview with Robin Thrall, by Linda Palmer. To learn more about Colonial CASA and their programs to support youth in Greater Williamsburg, please visit colonialcasa.org. To learn more about WHF’s grant funding opportunities, please visit williamsburghealthfoundation.org.

WHF is an independent private health foundation with the mission to collaborate, innovate, and invest to impact systems that improve the health and well-being of individuals living in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $116 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.

Grantee Spotlight: SHIP (School Health Initiative Program)

Aug 27, 2025 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: SHIP (School Health Initiative Program)

By: WHF Staff

If you walk into any classroom in Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools (WJCC Schools) and ask any student what SHIP is, you might hear a variety of adjectives, including “lowkey lit^”1, “bussin’^”2, or “fire^.”3 What you probably won’t hear is “it is a program that is teaching me how to choose healthy food, live an active lifestyle, and learn evidence-based wellness techniques that I can share with my family.” But that is exactly what SHIP is “lowkey” doing in the classrooms of the 16 WJCC Schools throughout the school year.

Since SHIP’s launch in the Fall of 2006, the program has engaged thousands of teachers and staff, and tens of thousands of students in health and wellness improvement education opportunities across the school division, including:

- Teaching nutrition classes in all kindergarten, first, and second-grade classrooms.
- Training teachers how to incorporate movement into lesson plans.
- Providing home kits and teaching cooking and gardening skills to families.
- Managing 85+ before- and after-school challenge clubs, which include nutritious snacks, physical activity, and transportation for 2000+ students annually.
- Delivering interactive cooking lessons to 27 special education classrooms.

The impact of SHIP’s work goes beyond the walls of WJCC and the school grounds. Both students and staff participants share SHIP resources and experiences with the program with their friends, family, and neighbors within the Greater Williamsburg community.

From a Problem to a Program

According to a report using data from the 2003-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, nationally, 16.5% of children between the ages of 2 and 19 were overweight, and 17.1% were classified as obese or severely obese. Specifically, in the Williamsburg-James City County local data compiled in 2004 by the Coalition for Obesity Prevention-Peninsula, the percentage of overweight youth in Williamsburg and James City was 29%, 27%, and 39% in kindergarten, third grade, and fifth grade, respectively. With this data in hand, Williamsburg Health Foundation’s (WHF) Staff and Board were moved to collaborate with WJCC Schools and other community partners to develop and launch a quality health program to foster lifelong physical activity, healthy eating habits in children, and provide access to health insurance. WJCC Schools launched the SHIP program in the Fall of 2006. Nineteen years later, the program continues to support and promote healthy eating and active lifestyle habits in schools, homes, and throughout Greater Williamsburg.

WHF’s Continued Support

SHIP’s work aligns with the WHF’s strategic plan. The program contributes to the Foundation’s vision, individuals making healthy choices in a community with health opportunities for all, and the goal of targeting behavioral and social risk factors that influence the health of individuals across the life span. As a Foundation-initiated program, WHF funds 68% of SHIP’s 2025-2026 program budget. Since 2004, the Foundation’s Board of Trustees has approved over $12.9 million to WJCC Schools to support SHIP and their mission.

Notes

Something that is secretly Exciting/excellent or enjoyable
Something is really good
Amazing or exciting

WHF is an independent private health foundation with the mission to collaborate, innovate, and invest to impact systems that improve the health and well-being of individuals living in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $116 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.

Grantee Spotlight: Child Health Initiative Care Teams

Aug 1, 2025 | Grantee Spotlight

Grantee Spotlight: Child Health Initiative Care Teams

By: WHF Staff

The City of Williamsburg’s and James City County’s Child Health Initiative Care Teams support local families as they work to improve their health and well-being. These initiatives pair each participating family with a dedicated team to work side-by-side in reaching the family’s goals. Grounded on the Aspen Institute’s evidence-based two-generation (2Gen) approach, Care Teams support the whole family, both the child and the adult. By simultaneously addressing the needs of both children and their caregivers, Care Teams help families tackle multiple challenges that affect their well-being with personalized, meaningful support.

The Care Teams implement the 2Gen approach of supporting both children and their caregivers for stronger, healthier families. Care Teams consist of a coordinator, case manager, registered nurse or community health specialist who collaborate in working with each family to build stability and resilience. Services are voluntary, free to eligible families, and tailored to families’ individual goals and needs.

Through their work, Care Teams help families build life skills around healthy living, self-advocacy, and economic stability. Families receive guidance in navigating healthcare and education systems and making connections to job training and employment resources — all tailored to their unique circumstances. The program involves frequent contact with families through home visits, medical accompaniment, ongoing monitoring, and collaboration with community partners.

The program assists families residing in Williamsburg or James City County who have a child in 5th grade or younger and are facing challenges in various areas. Eligible families include those who:

Experience limited income or struggle to access basic needs such as food, housing, or transportation.

Encounter difficulties navigating various community systems.

Have a child enrolled in services provided by Head Start, Bright Beginnings, or Child Development Resources.

Data gathered by the Foundation in 2024 revealed Care Teams had supported more than 170 individuals from 46 local families, helping them strengthen connections, navigate barriers, and take steps toward healthier, more stable futures. Entry and exit data show participation in the program improved health for children in the areas of adequate sleep, healthy food, physical activity, primary care medical home, recommended immunizations, school attendance, and up-to-date well care visits.

Williamsburg Health Foundation’s Continued Support

The work of the Child Health Initiative Care Teams aligns with the Williamsburg Health Foundation’s strategic plan goal of targeting behavioral and social risk factors that influence the health of individuals across the life span. Since 2015, the Foundation has awarded the City of Williamsburg and James City County 20 grants totaling nearly $5.1 million to support the Care Teams’ 2Gen approach to improving the health and well-being of families in Greater Williamsburg.

Visit https://www.williamsburgva.gov/756/Community-Programs to learn more about the City of Williamsburg’s Care Team. To learn more about James City County’s Care Team, visit https://www.jamescitycountyva.gov/3647/Care-Team.

______________________________________________________________________________

The Williamsburg Health Foundation (WHF) is an independent private health foundation with the mission to collaborate, innovate, and invest to impact systems that improve the health and well-being of individuals living in Greater Williamsburg. The Foundation was established in September 1996 when the Williamsburg Community Hospital and Sentara developed an affiliation agreement and later merged. This agreement included a provision for a new, locally organized, and managed Foundation to benefit community health. Since inception, WHF has awarded over $116 million in grants to improve community health and well-being.