|
WEST PALM
BEACH, Florida (May 30, 2013):
At last week’s meeting of Quantum Foundation’s Board of
Trustees, the board approved over $1.75 million in grants –
all of which will directly benefit local communities in Palm
Beach County. Grant recipients included Legal Aid Society of
the Palm Beaches ($50,000), Mental Health Association of
Palm Beach County ($50,000) and the University of Florida
($904,894). The board also approved an additional $750,000
for the Quantum in the Community initiative, which funds
grassroots non-profits providing for people’s basic needs
like food, housing and transport.
Quantum
Foundation is West Palm Beach’s largest health-related
grantmaking organization with 100 percent of funding dollars
staying in the county. The
foundation has assets of approximately $140 million and since
its inception in 1997 has
awarded nearly $100 million to more than 800 grantees in
Palm Beach County.
Under the
chairmanship of Mr. William Meyer, the 12-member board
unanimously approved the grants which will provide much
needed services directly aligned with the foundation’s
mission of funding innovative projects that improve the
health of all county residents:
·
The Legal
Aid Society
grant funds the Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP), which
primarily assists in resolving health-related legal issues
such as denial of benefits or financial hardship resulting
from the cost of medical care.
·
The
Mental Health Association
grant will help increase the capacity for mental health
professionals to work directly with primary care physicians,
resulting in a stronger “treat the whole person” approach to
health.
·
The
University of Florida
grant funds the Palm Beach STEM Initiative, which seeks to
equip county teachers with the tools and skills they need to
prepare students to enter science and health-related fields
of study or careers.
These
health care related grants come on the heels of a $100,000
award to El Sol, Jupiter’s Neighborhood Resource Center,
which Quantum’s board approved in March. That grant funds
the development of the center’s Promotores de Salud
program. Promotores are trained lay members of the
community who help families learn about and connect with
health care resources. Promotores improve the health
literacy of communities through trusted one-on-one,
peer-to-peer education.
The board
meeting also served as the last official event for outgoing
President Kerry Diaz who is stepping down to spend more time
with her husband and three school-aged sons. Eric Kelly, who
has served as Vice President of Programs for the foundation
since 2009, takes over from Ms. Diaz as President on June 1.
Ms. Diaz will continue to serve as a valued board member and
trustee.
Quantum
Foundation welcomes letters of inquiry/grant applications
from non-profits working directly within its focus areas.
For more information, please visit the organization’s
website at
www.quantumfnd.org
***
Background:
Quantum
Foundation is a private perpetual grant-making organization.
The foundation grants funds to approved charities and
certain government entities serving Palm Beach County,
Florida and, according to recent data compiled by the
Florida Philanthropic Network (FPN) Quantum Foundation is
the largest Palm Beach County-based health funder with 100%
of grant dollars staying in the county. The foundation works
to enhance health care access, improve health education, and
increase the quality and quantity of the health care
workforce, so that every resident of the county has the
opportunity to live a healthy life, regardless of their
income, education or background.
|