Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation Awards More Than $1.25 Million to 885 Organizations in 2018

Monday, January 28, 2019

Since 1980, more than $150 Million Awarded to Nonprofits Working to Build Healthy Communities in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire

WELLESLEY, MA -- Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation today announced that it awarded more than $1.25 million in grants to 885 nonprofit organizations in more than 350 communities in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire in 2018. Since its inception in 1980, the Foundation has granted more than $150 million in funds throughout the four states.

The Foundation helps build healthy communities by investing in programs that provide low-income families with access to fresh, healthy food, and supports Harvard Pilgrim employees as they invest their time and talents across the region. 

In 2018, more than $925,000 in grants was distributed to the Foundation’s Healthy Food Fund initiatives within the region, with funds supporting programs that grow and distribute fresh food for families and communities across the region. (See below for a summary of the Foundation’s 2018 major grant recipients.) 

Healthy Food Fund grants included:

  • $616,065 in third-year grants to 20 not-for-profit community food access initiatives in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. 
  • $38,000 in Healthy Aging grants in Massachusetts, Maine, and New Hampshire.  The funded programs helped older adults eat better and stay connected with their communities through community garden, cooking, and nutrition programs.
  • $271,000 to support five mobile farmers’ markets in Worcester and Lowell, MA, Hartford, CT, Lewiston/Auburn, ME; and the seacoast of New Hampshire.

“Since launching the Healthy Food Fund more than three years ago, an independent evaluation clearly demonstrates that the amount of local produce distributed to low-income families across the region has increased significantly,” said Karen Voci, President of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation.  “Our grants to locally-based organizations throughout New England have helped families eat better and have greater access to nutritious food in ways that are real, impactful and measurable.”

In addition to the more than $925,000 in Healthy Food and Healthy Aging grants, the Foundation also awarded $609,450 to 823 organizations in 288 communities through Harvard Pilgrim’s employee-directed Community Spirit 9/11 Mini-Grant program. This program enables each Harvard Pilgrim Health Care employee to annually award a $500 grant, completely funded by the Foundation, to the charity of his or her choice. Since the inception of this community grant program in 2002, the Foundation has contributed more than $6.3 million to thousands of organizations in the region. Grant recipients have included schools, food pantries, youth development organizations, and fundraising events.

In 2018, almost $150,000 was spent for Service and Giving work throughout the region.  Of that, nearly $40,000 was awarded to nonprofit partner organizations including City Year, Cradles to Crayons, and Hands on Hartford that support Harvard Pilgrim’s employee service in local communities. Harvard Pilgrim employee contributions—made through the company’s annual employee fund raising campaign and supplemented by Foundation support—totaled more than $58,000 and were distributed to United Ways of New England and other local nonprofits chosen by employees.  The Foundation and employees also contributed to various disaster relief efforts including $11,000 for the Merrimack Valley gas explosions and more than $5,000 to Hurricane Florence.  

A summary of some of the Foundation’s 2018 major grant recipients is included below:

2018 Connecticut Grant Recipients:  Total $176,049

  • $50,500 -- Hartford Food Systems, Mobile Farmers’ Market
  • $28,000 -- New Haven Farms and New Haven Land Trust, Farm-Based Wellness, Cooking and Nutrition Program, incubator garden
  • $25,000 – Green Village Initiative (Bridgeport), Community Gardens Program
  • $22,349 – Brass City Harvest (Waterbury), Healthy Corner Store Initiative; Cooking and Nutrition Classes
  • $20,000 – CT Food Bank (East Haven), Farm-to-Pantry program
  • $7,500 – Hartford Promise, Integrated College Success program

2018 Maine Grant Recipients: Total $181,231

  • $50,000 – St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center (Lewiston/Auburn) and Cultivating Community, Good Food Bus Mobile Farmers’ Market
  • $25,000 – Healthy Communities of the Capital Area (Southern Kennebec County), Expand gleaning and food processing through Restorative Community Harvest Program
  • $25,000 – Maine Farmland Trust (Biddeford, Portland, Saco, S. Portland, and Westbrook), SNAP incentives at Farmers’ markets, CSA programs, food hubs, co-ops
  • $25,000 – Wolfe’s Neck Center Foundation (Greater Bath and Brunswick), Teen Agriculture Program; cooking and nutrition programming
  • $24,681 – Cultivating Community (Portland), Expand CSA shares; cooking and nutrition classes
  • $10,000 – Olympia Snowe Women’s Leadership Institute (Portland), Girls Leadership program
  • $5,000 – Children’s Museum of Maine, Fundraising Campaign

2018 Massachusetts Grant Recipients: Total $633,011

  • $100,000 -- Boys & Girls Clubs (Boston), Farm-to-Family program
  • $61,700 -- Regional Environmental Council (Worcester), Mobile Farmers’ Market
  • $61,000 – Mill City Grows (Lowell), Mobile Farmers’ Market
  • $40,000 -- City Year (Boston), Service Activities at Joseph Lee K-8 School and Extended Day programs
  • $34,393 – Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley (Lawrence), Healthy Eating for Successful Living Program
  • $25,500 – Boston Area Gleaners (Waltham), Distribution and Delivery Program
  • $25,000 – Gardening the Community (Springfield), Expansion of Walnut St. garden; Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture
  • $25,000 – Groundwork Lawrence, CSA program, youth-led urban agriculture program, cooking and nutrition classes
  • $25,000 – Grow Food Northampton, Food Access Northampton; Giving Garden
  • $25,000 – Growing Places (Leominster), Teaching Garden, Garden on the GO, cooking classes
  • $25,000 – Nourishing the North Shore (Newburyport, Amesbury, Salisbury, Rowley, Newbury, West Newbury), Garden and food delivery expansion initiatives, cooking and nutrition classes
  • $21,000 – Community Harvest Project (North Grafton), Volunteer Farming Initiative; Farm-to-Health Center program
  • $14,548 –Coastal Food Shed (New Bedford), Subsidized CSA program; cooking and nutrition training
  • $12,000 – Big Sister Association of Greater Boston, fundraising events

2018 New Hampshire Grant Recipients: $187,254

  • $60,200 – Seacoast Eat Local (Dover), Mobile Farmers’ Market
  • $25,000 – Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health, Inc. (Laconia), Pop-up Farmers’ Market; cooking demonstrations and community gardens
  • $39,330 – Women’s Rural Entrepreneurial Network (WREN) (Berlin), Farmers’ Market Grow Healthy Initiative; Outdoor Teaching Kitchen
  • $14,087 – Tamworth Community Nurse Association, Tamworth Farmers’ Market SNAP expansion
  • $7,500 – NH Center for Nonprofits (Concord), Nonprofit Impact Awards
  • $7,500 – Brain Injury Association of NH (Concord), Caregiver Conference
  • $5,000 – The CareGivers, Inc. (Manchester), Rides for Healthy Living and Caring Cupboards  

About The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation
Created in 1980, The Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation supports Harvard Pilgrim's mission to improve the quality and value of health care for the people and communities we serve. The Harvard Pilgrim Foundation provides the tools, training and leadership to help build healthy communities throughout Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. In 2018, the Harvard Pilgrim Foundation awarded more than $1.25 million in grants to 855 nonprofit organizations in the region.  Since its inception in 1980, the Foundation has awarded $150 million in funds and resources throughout the four states.  For more information, please visit www.harvardpilgrim.org/foundation.

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Contact:

Kimberly (Moore) Winn
Senior Communications Specialist
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
kimberly_winn@harvardpilgrim.org

Website: www.harvardpilgrim.org

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