New Foundation a Catalyst for Community Health Improvement

The Better Health Foundation will award up to $4 million in the greater Quad Cities region for the improvement of community health over the next two years. 

New to the funding landscape as a private foundation, the Better Health Foundation met with nonprofit leaders today to announce its first grant application cycle and to share its inaugural funding priorities:  mental and behavioral health, risk reduction of obesity and diabetes, and maternal and child health.

Board President Dr. William Langley said, “We are eager to invest in programs that have or will result in significant community health results. Our goal is to create strong partnerships, bring new ideas and approaches to the forefront, and allow proven initiatives to reach greater numbers of people.”

The Better Health Foundation will accept grant requests beginning October 1 from qualified 501(c)3 organizations in Cedar, Clinton, Louisa, Muscatine and Scott counties in Iowa, and Henry, Mercer, Rock Island and Whiteside counties in Illinois.

With assets exceeding $40 million, the Better Health Foundation is poised to become one of the preeminent granting organizations in Iowa.

The Better Health Foundation was seeded by Genesis Health System (GHS) prior to the healthcare system joining MercyOne, a statewide Iowa Health System, last March. 

Dr. Kurt Andersen, who leads MercyOne’s Eastern Iowa Division, said, “The GHS Board and Leadership wanted to establish a well-endowed, independent foundation that would be able to do significant work improving the health of the community.”

Better Health Foundation CEO, Melinda “Missy” Gowey, CFRE, led the foundations at Genesis Health System for 22 years prior to assuming her current role. 

Said Gowey, “I have a deep appreciation for the role of philanthropy in creating opportunities for better health and wellbeing. It’s an extraordinary privilege for me to carry forward the Genesis legacy and to see funds result in people living longer, healthier lives.”

To receive information about applying a grant, contact Elaine Schilling, eschilling@thebetterhealthfoundation.org or call the Better Health Foundation at 563-383-6065.