The Wellmark Foundation Matching Assets to Community Health (MATCH) grant program is a challenge/matching grant approach designed to bring funders together to support community healthy projects needing potentially higher levels of funding or collaboration. The term “matching grant” means that an organization is required to raise some amount of money to “match” the grant amount.
The Wellmark Foundation supports promising and important policies and programs that can help individuals, families and communities achieve better health through active living and consumption of nutritious foods now and for generations to come.
“We encourage organizations to submit projects that can influence health — even those that might not be traditional ‘health’ organizations,” said Mike Gerrish, executive director of The Wellmark Foundation.
This could include broad community coalitions to address ideas, programs or projects such as: advancing environmental approaches seeking to change community infrastructure; increasing access to healthy, affordable foods; or enhancing community opportunities to be physically active. Those projects that can demonstrate long-term sustainability — meaning they will have a lasting effect after the grant funding is over — are preferred.
“This is a great opportunity for communities and groups to come together to raise funds and get them matched by The Wellmark Foundation to accelerate funding for community health improvement,” said Gerrish.
The first step in the grant application process for the 2015 MATCH grant program is to submit a Letter of Interest by 5 p.m. on Friday, May 15, 2015. The Letter of Interest will acquaint the Foundation with the abilities, interests and plans of the applicant prior to completion of the entire grant process.
To learn more about the MATCH grant program, including budget planning and match requirements and the program timeline, visit http://www.wellmark.com/
A list of previous grant recipients can be found on the Foundation’s website atwww.wellmark.com/foundation.
The Wellmark Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation and an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Blue Cross®, Blue Shield®, and the Cross® and Shield® symbols are registered marks of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an Association of Independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.
