More than $4 million in grant money was distributed across 19 Queens organizations by the nonprofit Mother Cabrini Health Foundation to be used for the purpose of advancing health equity for underserved members of the community.
The main mission of the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation is to improve the health and wellbeing of New Yorkers, bolster the health outcomes of vulnerable communities, eliminate barriers to care and bridge gaps in health services. It funds programs and initiatives across the state that provide either direct healthcare services or address the social determinants of health.
Some of the funding distributed to Queens programs included $945,500 to Bayside’s Ozanam Hall of Queens Nursing Home’s “Love Made Visible” program, which offers activities and support for dementia parents, $250,000 to Hollis’ Haitian Americans United for Progress for the its “Healthy Moms, Healthy Baby” health awareness and support program for new and expecting mothers and $200,000 to the Fortune Society in Long Island City, which provides behavioral health support for formerly incarcerated New Yorkers.
Other Queens organizations to receive funding included the Bridge to Life Inc. in College Point, Hour Children, the New York Junior Tennis League and the Research Foundation of CUNY at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, Women for Afghan Women in Fresh Meadows, the Child Center of NY, Inc. in Forest Hills, St. Mary’s Hospital for Children, Inc. and Community Inclusion and Development Alliance Inc. in Bayside, the South Asian Council for Social Services and Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation in Flushing, the Chhaya Community Development Corporation in Jackson Heights, the Samuel Field YM and YWHA in Little Neck, Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities in Corona, Sunnyside Community Services in Sunnyside and India Home, Inc. across multiple Queens locations.
In total, the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation distributed $172 million in grants to 514 organizations and programs across New York State to address the community health needs and disparities in health outcomes across the state.
All of the programs and organizations chosen to receive grant money were selected either via an open call or by invitation, according to Mother Cabrini Health Foundation Managing Director of Programs Liza Primeau. The needs of residents was one of the main priorities in selecting organizations for this grant. These include access to healthcare, basic needs, mental and behavioral health and supporting the healthcare workforce.
Each organization that submitted a request for funding went through a rigorous review process, which includes research on the organization, how the grant money could help an organization, reviewing the financials of the organization and more.
“We really put in an effort to find the strongest programs that we think will have the most impact on underserved New Yorkers,” Primeau said. “Through that process, we made over 500 grants to organizations across the state. I think it’s incredibly important to be able to do this kind of work. We’re extremely privileged to have the strong grantee partners we have in Queens and across the state. The needs of New Yorkers are growing and changing. We have many migrants calling New York home. We have stresses on our healthcare workforce. The organizations on the ground doing the work in Queens and across the state are transformational and we are really proud to be able to support them.”
There are a number of factors that play a role in determining just how much grant money is provided for an organization. Such factors include the nature and/or scale of an organization’s project, the size of an organization and whether or not other sources of funding are provided for a project. Even if there are other sources of funding for a project, the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation may still provide some funding.
“I think the organizations are the experts at the work they do,” Primeau said. “We trust them to continue the great work that they are doing to support those who need it the most. We hope they are addressing health disparities. We hope they are listening and working in partnership with their communities and providing the support that New Yorkers need to live healthy lives. We are really proud of the organizations we’re supporting and look forward to partner with them over the coming year.”
Grant applications for next year are expected to open sometime in the spring.
