The Healthy Communities Foundation extends our deepest condolences to Adam Toledo’s family and all who loved him—we join in their grief. We also extend our condolences to all who have lost someone beloved to police violence. We support the Little Village community, a community in our service region, as we

The Chicago Mayor’s Office recognized our President Maria Pesqueira and Healthy Communities Foundation’s contributions to advance health and wellness at their Women’s History Month Community Champions virtual event on March 30th. The evening highlighted various leaders in Chicagoland who have gone above and beyond to advance gender equity.  As an

On March 29th, our President Maria Pesqueira, along with Adela Cepeda, an Independent Corporate Director, and Cristina De La Rosa from our partner Erie Neighborhood House, participated in “Latino Voices: A WTTW News Community Conversation.” The discussion, hosted by Araceli Gómez-Aldana from WBEZ Chicago, highlighted Latinas in Chicago for Women’s

On March 16th, the senseless killings of eight people, including six Asian American women, in Georgia hit home for us. We recognize that this display of racism and hate is not new or an isolated incident; it is another unfortunate example of the significant uptick in anti-Asian violence reported by Stop AAPI Hate and a manifestation of a deeply rooted, centuries-old

The Mission Sustainability Initiative (MSI) at Forefront provides resources and support to nonprofits looking to strengthen their organization through strategic partnerships. Listen to this conversation between our Program Officer Tina Ramirez Moon and Molly Baltman Leonard, Assistant Director of the Communities Program at the McCormick Foundation, who co-chair the MSI

Our Vice Chair Carl Bergetz, General Counsel for Rush University System for Health and adjunct professor at University of Illinois College of Law, was recently interviewed by Crain’s Chicago Business about the need for reforming health law and policy in Illinois.  Here is an excerpt of that interview: Q: In

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JANUARY 28 2021 Media Contact: Jackie Rodriguez, 708-443-4518, jrodriguez@hcfdn.org  Healthy Communities Foundation announces new Board Officer appointments, effective as of January 1, 2021. Riverside, IL—The Healthy Communities Foundation is pleased to announce new Board Officer appointments, effective as of January 1, 2021. Grace Hou’s term as Board

We are saddened and outraged about the white supremacist violence that we, as a country, witnessed on January 6th at the U.S. Capitol. Amid feelings of anger and disbelief, we must hold on tightly to hope and light that exists in the darkness. As we persist in our battle against

The Health & Medicine Policy Research Group, Community Memorial Foundation, and Healthy Communities Foundation hosted the “Community Health Worker Model: Lessons Learned and Impact in the Western Suburbs” webinar on December 4th. As the Community Health Worker (CHW) pilot heads into its third year, speakers shared their experiences and insights

On December 8th, our President Maria Pesqueira, along with John Palfrey of MacArthur Foundation and Nicole Taylor of Silicon Valley Community Foundation, participated in “The President’s Forum on Racial Equity in Philanthropy” panel discussion, hosted by Keecha Harris & Associates and Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. In this virtual roundtable, the

In her second blog of this series, Gillian Knight, our Program Associate, shares an update on where Healthy Communities Foundation is on its journey towards implementing an evaluation framework that is rooted in equity and is informed by community. Listen to or read their conversation below. “Alignment” is the intention

As cities across the nation and within the greater Chicago region began to launch vaccine roll–out and distribution—a much-anticipated end-phase to the COVID-19 pandemic—whispers of frustration have strengthened to become a critical public discourse of compounding racial/ethnic and health inequities for Black, Latinx, Arab and Indigenous communities. Health department officials, peer funders, and health institutions were genuinely surprised by the deep racial/ethnic inequities present in

Amalia Rioja, whose tenure as our new Board Chair began in January, talks with our President Maria Pesqueira about what the road to recovery looks like for our region, the role of Healthy Communities Foundation, and what she looks forward to in her new role. Listen to or read their conversation

This post originally appeared in the Grantmakers in Health’s “Views from the Field” in the January 2021 Bulletin. COVID-19 has not been an equal opportunity pandemic. It has impacted Latinx, Black and Indigenous communities, immigrants, older adults, and the uninsured more profoundly than the general population. At the start of

This year has been like no other. Our region and communities, particularly our Legacy & Equity zip codes, have devastatingly felt the impact of the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and structural racism. Our President Maria Pesqueira and IDHS Secretary Grace Hou, whose term as Board Chair ends at the end

This post originally appeared on the Exponent Philanthropy blog. The coronavirus pandemic has opened many of our eyes to how sectors and systems do or don’t address the ever-growing health and income inequities in this country. We can approach this realization in two ways: We can admit the inadequacies of

We are happy to introduce Lynda Murphy as the new Project Manager for The HUB! Since 2018, The HUB, a free digital resource directory and referral platform, has served as an important tool to connect local nonprofit health and social service providers and community members in Chicago, west suburban Cook

“Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next.” –Arundhati Roy, “The Pandemic is a Portal,” Financial Times. This quote guided the Healthy Communities Foundation staff as

Equity is everywhere. More than ever, organizations are asked to demonstrate how they address social inequities, not just by what they do, but by who they are and how they do it. Funders are no exception. How does an organization start? How can equity be embedded in grantmaking, policies, and

The newest member of the HCF team, Gillian Knight, introduces herself and talks about her work to help establish an evaluation framework for the Foundation that is rooted in equity.  My name is Gillian Knight and I am the new Program Associate at Healthy Communities Foundation. My role is to