With almost 133 thousand dollars, Dignity Health Sequoia Hospital of Redwood City will fund five nonprofit organizations to support the health and well-being of San Mateo County's neediest families.
"All of these organizations have historically proven to generate significant and measurable change for our county's most vulnerable communities," said Bill Graham, president of Sequoia Hospital.
The executive stressed that by providing funding to nonprofit collaborations, they can leverage their individual strengths and maximize impact for those most in need.
Sequoia Hospital of Redwood City will fund nonprofit organizations including:
Homeless Outreach Team's (HOT) LifeMoves program which provides emergency support services to the unsheltered in San Mateo County.
Between June 2020 and July 2021, LifeMoves HOT provided case management and supportive services to more than 1,500 people countywide, and helped more than 450 people transition from the streets to shelter or stable housing.
"When the basic needs of our unsheltered neighbors are met - shelter, food, safety - and we show them that someone cares, someone believes in them, then they can regain their dignity and have a real chance to rebuild and rejoin our community," said Isa Karabed, senior director of regional initiatives for LifeMoves, after thanking Sequoia Hospital for its support.
The Acknowledge Alliance Collaborative Counseling program is another funded project, providing direct psychotherapy services to at-risk youth in San Mateo County community schools.
Youth who receive mental health counseling services learn to cope with trauma, manage emotions, build healthy relationships and overcome adversity in their lives. Their culturally sensitive, strengths-based therapeutic approach leads to resilience, lasting change and renewed hope for the future.
"With Sequoia's support, students in our program have a success rate of more than 90 percent in keeping up with and graduating from high school," said Ryan Magcuyao, senior development manager for Acknowledge Alliance.
Operation Access partners with Sequoia Hospital to provide surgery and specialized medical care for low-income and uninsured individuals.
"As a result of partnerships like this, patients at local community clinics have a better quality of life and ability to work as they find relief from pain and disability," said Jason Beers, Operation Access, president and CEO.
He added that overcoming barriers to accessing health services promotes equity for immigrants and others who do not have access to health insurance.
Sonrisas Dental Health - School Screening Program provides a dental home to children and adults, including those with physical, developmental or economic challenges, and provides free dental screenings and education to students in low-income schools in San Mateo County.
"Providing regular dental care to children can affect their overall health for the rest of their lives. Partners like Sequoia Hospital make that care possible," said Tracey Carrillo Fecher, CEO of Sonrisas Dental Health.
5.- Finally, the "WHY" comprehensive youth health initiative is a collaboration of local agencies striving to improve support systems for underserved youth in North Fair Oaks and Redwood City.
Its mission is to improve the mental health of youth by providing wellness programs, education and resources for youth and their supporters.
The core partners of the WHY initiative (Friends for Youth, Redwood City PAL (Police Activities League), Siena Youth Center and One Life Counseling Center?will collaborate in 2022 to create an integrated network of programs that will benefit the mental health of community members in a multi-faceted and holistic manner.
"We focus on providing bilingual, culturally responsive, trauma-informed services for Latino families who face systemic barriers to accessing services," said Michael Solorio, partnership coordinator for Friends for Youth.
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