More than $100,000 awarded in grants from healthcare fund

The St. Vincent Community Healthcare Fund Committee announced that it has awarded 29 grants totaling $104,459, according to a Worcester diocesan press release.

“Our clients are really struggling to get healthcare such as a physical in order to get a job that will put food on the table or keep a roof over their family's heads,” said Lisa Izzo of St. Anne Free Medical Program, Shrewsbury and St. Peter Free Medical Program, Worcester.

“Their children also need physicals and the right vaccinations to go to school. All this lab work is the highest expense for us to serve our clients well and these grants go a long way to assist with that cost.”

Last year the grant committee overseeing the fund awarded 22 grants totaling $97,000. Grants have been awarded each year since the fund was established in 1998.

“The need for essentials including diapers and basic healthcare items has never been greater in our four Emergency Service Offices,” said Timothy McMahon, executive director of Catholic Charities Worcester County.

“The grant will provide diapers to families in need to help keep their babies healthy while they are struggling daily to make ends meet.”

The fund is overseen by the Diocese of Worcester. It has distributed more than $1.5 million for a variety of uses, including free health programs, mental health and substance abuse counseling, school nursing and healthcare, and nursing care and medication for homeless families and shelters.

The 29 recipients and their programs, according to the press release include: 2Gether We Eat Inc. for nutrition education and wellness access for seniors;  Carenet Pregnancy Resource Center of North Central Massachusetts for ultrasounds at their facility; Catholic Charities Worcester County for the diaper program;  Dismas House of Massachusetts, Inc. for medical supplies and mental health support for residents; Holy Family Academy for school nursing; McAuley Nazareth Inc. for nursing for abused children; North Brookfield Senior Center for heart disease education, wellness programs, and outreach to seniors; Notre Dame Health Care for palliative care counseling; and Our Lady of the Angels School for nurse & health office supplies.

Grants were also given to Pastoral Counseling Centers of Massachusetts, Inc. for mental health counseling for those with financial difficulty; Pernet Family Health Service for Maternal & Infant Nursing Program; Problem Pregnancy of Worcester, Inc. for an ultrasound project; the Respect Life Office of the Diocese of Worcester for bioethics resources for clergy from the National Catholic Bioethics Center; Retired Priests Ministry of the Diocese of Worcester for medical services to retired priests;  St. Anne Parish for AEDs and related costs;  St. Anne Free Medical Program for expanded diagnostic and lab testing; St. Cecilia Parish for AEDs; St. John's Food for the Poor for help with their hygiene project for the homeless; St. Luke's Guesthouse for medical supplies and counseling and services for homeless; St. Mary Health Care Center for expanded patient/client safety;  St. Mary School for CPR and AED training & medical supplies; St. Paul Diocesan Jr./Sr. High School for the student mental health support program; St. Paul's Elder Outreach for healthcare access and medical supports for seniors; St. Peter Free Medical Program for expanded diagnostic and lab testing; The Manny 267 Foundation for drowning prevention and CPR training; Virginia Thurston Healing Garden, Inc. for psychosocial cancer support treatment; Visitation House, Inc. for in-house breastfeeding classes; VNA Care Network, Inc. for nursing & medical social work case management; and You, Inc. for mental health support for traumatized youth.  

In 1998 the fund was started with $1.6 million that had been raised by the St. Vincent Development Foundation prior to the sale of the St. Vincent Hospital to OrNda Healthcorp in 1996.

“At that time the Foundation ceased its operation. During the oversight process by the Attorney General’s Office, it was determined that the funds that had been raised by the foundation would be given to the Diocese of Worcester to support health care programs and services in the community,” the press release stated.

“These funds are to be used in accordance with the original wishes of the donors and with the original mission of the Foundation, namely that it be a nonprofit organization directly benefiting residents of Worcester County in healthcare; work for the development of medical and healthcare services by supporting and strengthening the services provided by nonprofit health care providers which provide services to residents of Worcester County; provide for the needs of Worcester County residents through the purchase of medical and other health care services or supplies; and the organization and its activity for which funding is requested must conform to the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. Recipients must provide a completed evaluation of the grant form to the Fund Allocations Committee at the end of the program funding.”