St. Joseph's Foundation awards health grants

St. Joseph's Foundation recently awarded Community Health Initiative Grants.

* Bay Lake Area Lion's Charities -- $2,500 to continue the Lions Mobility Bus serving primarily the elderly and handicapped. It provides transportation to health-care providers in the Brainerd lakes area.

Transportation is provided at no cost to the passengers. The operation is staffed entirely by trained volunteers.

* Bethany Good Samaritan Village -- $5,000 to do initial site planning of land for a medical complex. If the feasibility project is positive, it will result in building a 16-bed facility for higher functioning dementia residents in Baxter.

* Pine River Library Building Foundation -- $20,000 to help support phase two of the library renovation, which will include a Wellness Solution designated section. And $5,000 of the award will be used for a computer system to access online medical information.

Grant applications for the next quarterly review are due by July 1. For application forms and more information, call 828-7641.

Grant proposals must focus on community needs within the St. Joseph's Medical Center service area, be a non-profit or governmental agency and meet one or more of these criteria:

1. Provide health care services to patients and families who use St. Joseph's Medical Center and its clinics.

2. Clearly show evidence of collaboration with organizations with similar missions for optimum community impact and value.

3. Initiate/support health-related programs in response to expressed community needs.

4. Fund research and investigation into new and better ways of providing care, preventing and treating disease and promoting health.

5. Fund health education for patients, families, professionals and the broader community.

Applications that have a mental health focus will be given priority.