Healthy Lakewood Foundation

TO ADVANCE PROGRAMS, POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT INSPIRE A LAKEWOOD COMMUNITY IN WHICH HEALTH AND WELLNESS ARE REFLECTED IN ALL ASPECTS OF LIFE.

IN 2023, THE HEALTHY LAKEWOOD FOUNDATION (HLF) CONTINUED ITS COMPREHENSIVE GRANTMAKING STRATEGY, FOCUSING ON ITS THREE CORE GRANTS PROGRAMS DURING THE YEAR. THE HLF BOARD AWARDED 225,000 IN COMMUNITY GRANTS IN JULY; 139,820 IN NEIGHBORHOOD OPPORTUNITY GRANTS IN NOVEMBER; 22,488 AS SYSTEMS-LEVEL GRANTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR; AND OTHER GRANTMAKING TOTALING 7,500. HLF'S GRANTMAKING IN 2023 TOTALED 394,808. HLF CREATED AND HIRED A PART-TIME FOUNDATION AND GRANTS COORDINATOR POSITION TO SUPPORT ITS ADMINISTRATIVE AND GRANTMAKING PROCESSES. HLF'S BOARD ORGANIZES ITS WORK THROUGH FIVE STANDING COMMITTEES: EXECUTIVE; FINANCE; GOVERNANCE; COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT; AND LEARNING, EVALUATION, AND ASSESSMENT. THESE COMMITTEES MEET AT LEAST QUARTERLY, DEVELOP ANNUAL PRIORITIES, AND UTILIZE WORK PLANS TO ADDRESS BOARD BUSINESS OUTSIDE OF HLF'S BI-MONTHLY BOARD MEETINGS. IN JULY 2023, HLF'S FINANCE COMMITTEE REVISED THE INVESTMENT POLICY STATEMENT AND ITS ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, AND GOVERNANCE (ESG) SCREENING REQUIREMENTS. ADDITIONALLY, THE FINANCE COMMITTEE CONDUCTED A THREE-YEAR REVIEW OF ITS INVESTMENT ADVISOR TO ENSURE CUSTOMER SERVICE AND APPROPRIATE OVERSIGHT. HLF STAFF CONTINUED WORKING WITH A COMMUNICATIONS CONSULTANT TO INCREASE THE ORGANIZATION'S PRESENCE ON THREE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS, EMAIL MARKETING, AND WEBSITE MARKETING. HLF UTILIZED THESE COMMUNICATIONS MODALITIES TO INCREASE AWARENESS IN THE COMMUNITY AND AMONG AREA NON- PROFITS OF ITS GRANTMAKING AND PROGRAMMING OPPORTUNITIES. ON SEPTEMBER 20, 2023, HLF HELD ITS FIFTH ANNUAL COMMUNITY MEETING IN PERSON, DRAWING OVER 70 LAKEWOOD RESIDENTS AND STAKEHOLDERS TO HEAR UPDATES ON HLF'S WORK AND PROGRESS OVER THE PAST YEAR, ASK QUESTIONS OF THE BOARD AND STAFF, AND PROVIDE FEEDBACK. HLF ENGAGED TWO NON-BOARD MEMBER VOLUNTEERS ON ITS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE. HLF UPDATED ITS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACCOUNTABILITY PLAN WHICH PROVIDES THE STANDARDS AND PRACTICES TO WHICH THE FOUNDATION WILL BE ACCOUNTABLE IN ENGAGING WITH AND INCORPORATING FEEDBACK FROM THE LAKEWOOD COMMUNITY. HLF APPOINTED ONE NEW MEMBER TO ITS BOARD IN 2023 DUE TO ATTRITION. THE BOARD ELECTED OFFICERS AND RENEWED BOARD TERMS AS IT DOES ANNUALLY AT ITS MARCH ANNUAL MEETING. THE BOARD APPROVED A BOARD COMPENSATION POLICY THAT PROVIDES NOMINAL REIMBURSEMENT FOR BOARD MEMBERS TO SUBSIDIZE CHILDCARE AND TRAVEL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH BOARD PARTICIPATION. ADDITIONALLY, THE BOARD APPROVED CHARTERS FOR EACH OF ITS STANDING COMMITTEES PROPOSED BY THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE TO ENHANCE THE DELINEATION OF DUTIES FOR EACH. THROUGH ITS LEARNING, EVALUATION, AND ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE, HLF CONDUCTED A COMMUNITY FEEDBACK SURVEY WHICH INTEGRATED STAKEHOLDER AND GRANTEE INPUT INTO FOUR KEY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVED COMMUNICATIONS, COLLABORATION, AND GRANTMAKING PROCESSES. HLF'S EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SERVES ON THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE OF THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD'S COMMUNITY HEALTH ACTION TEAM, WHICH SUPPORTS THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTIONS RELATED TO IDENTIFIED HEALTH NEEDS AS WELL AS THE CONSIDERATION OF FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES FOR COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS, PROGRAMMING, AND OTHER INITIATIVES TO BUILD AND SUSTAIN A CULTURE OF HEALTH ACTION IN LAKEWOOD.