(Salem, Ore. – March 30, 2022) – Salem Health will award Community Investment Grants for fiscal year 2022-23, aimed at responding to community-identified needs and supporting initiatives that improve the health of the citizens of Marion and Polk counties. Grant awards are for one year of funding, up to $30,000 per grant. Applications open on April 4, and the deadline to apply is May 6. Application forms and detailed criteria are available at Salem Health’s website.

The goal of the Community Investment Grant is to strengthen the health of our communities. Salem Health’s funding priorities align with the Marion-Polk Community Health Improvement Plan and Community Needs Assessment. Salem Health’s priority areas for 2020-23 seek to invest grant resources in projects that meet needs related to behavioral health, substance abuse prevention and social determinants of health.

“We are pleased to invest in community partners fostering health in those we serve,” said Leilani Slama, Chief Communications and Community Relations Officer, Salem Health. “Together, we are creating a healthier community.”

Salem Health’s Community Investment Grants for fiscal year 2021-22 included: 

• Boys & Girls Club, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for dental and primary care support
• CASA of Polk County, $26,000 to recruit, train and retain court appointed special advocates (CASAs) for 147 cases
• Catholic Community Services, Woodburn, $30,000 for health access to reduce adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)
• Church at the Park, Marion County, $30,000 for housing the houseless population
• Family Building Blocks, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for mental health services
• Habitat for Humanity, Salem, $30,000 for enabling home ownership
• Integrated Support for Living, Salem and Silverton, $30,000 for behavioral health support services
• Liberty House, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for mental health services
• Love INC, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for health access and social services
• Marion Polk Food Share’s Youth Farm, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for its Farm Share Rx (FSRx) program to focus on food security, food equity and health equity
• St. Francis Shelter, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for family transitional housing savings program
• Union Gospel Mission, Marion and Polk counties, $30,000 for mental health support services
• United Way, Marion County, $30,000 for SafeSleep women’s shelter
• Willamette Education Service District (WESD), Salem, non-monetary partnership with Salem Health that provides a nursing collaboration for technical education training for high school students
• De Muniz Resource Center, Marion County, non-monetary partnership with Salem Health that provides Community Health Education Center (CHEC) collaboration for health and wellness for inmates as they exit incarceration and integrate back into our community

In addition to these new grants for 2021-22, Salem Health renewed its grants to Mano a Mano Family Center and HOME Youth Services for the 2021-22 fiscal year, and also awarded the Marion County Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program a $30,000 Community Investment Grant to support the work of LEAD in the community.

About Salem Health Hospitals and Clinics

Salem Health offers exceptional care to people in and around Oregon’s mid-Willamette Valley. It comprises hospitals in Salem and Dallas, a medical group of primary and specialty care providers, plus other affiliated services. Visit us at www.salemhealth.org; “Like” us on www.facebook.com/salemhealth; follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @salemhealth; and view us at www.youtube.com/salemhealth.