Saint Joseph Hospital and Saint Joseph East Award More Than $235,000 in Grants to Local Nonprofits

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 18, 2024) – Saint Joseph Hospital and Saint Joseph East have awarded $235,000 in grant funding to six local nonprofit organizations to improve the well-being and health equity of the Lexington area. The grant recipients are Centro de San Juan Diego, Community Inspired Lexington, the Hope Center, LexArts, Refuge for Women and YMCA of Central Kentucky. The funding will support local cancer patients, the unsheltered population, those battling mental illness, human trafficking survivors, and low-income minority populations.

“Each of these incredible organizations is making a profound impact on the health of our city, and we are proud to support their efforts,” said Anthony Houston, Ed.D., FACHE, market president, CHI Saint Joseph Health. “This investment is a testament to our belief in the transformative power of community partnerships, and we look forward to the positive outcomes of these collaborations throughout the communities we serve.”

The grant funding will be used for the following throughout 2024:

• Centro de San Juan Diego serves low-income minority populations, primarily in the Cardinal Valley neighborhood. The nonprofit received $25,000 to support its counseling and educational workshops, which focus on mental health issues, as well as its health clinics and health fairs.
• Community Inspired Lexington, which provides opportunities and support for youth and families in the North Lexington community, received $20,000 to help provide food and health screenings to the individuals served by the organization.
• Hope Center, an organization that provides comprehensive life-sustaining and life-rebuilding services to promote healing from substance use disorder, mental health disorders and homelessness, received $50,000 to support mobile outreach services for Lexington’s unsheltered population.
• LexArts received $50,000 to create an Arts in Health Council, expand the Photovoice project (photos of the most important mental health issues facing the local community), and implement a project to incorporate painting into patient care followed by an exhibit (providing psychosocial support to cancer survivors).
• Refuge for Women, a long-term housing and emergency housing for women who have escaped human trafficking or sexual exploitation, received $40,000 to continue care for women who have been sexually exploited.
• YMCA of Central Kentucky received $50,000 to expand its LIVESTRONG program for local cancer patients to two additional locations – the North location and the Beaumont location. The free program includes exercise classes, individualized training sessions, social engagement activities and educational seminars for those battling cancer and survivors.

Across Kentucky, CHI Saint Joseph Health awarded more than $355,000 through the grant program, which was open to nonprofit organizations that address the following priorities – substance use disorders, mental health and mental disorders, and weight status, physical activity and nutrition – through projects planned for the next calendar year. The priorities were identified in Saint Joseph Hospital’s and Saint Joseph East’s most recent community health needs assessment, which is conducted every three years to help the hospitals and community partners identify and address priority health and social needs faced by residents and the region.

This opportunity was part of the CommonSpirit Health Community Health Improvement Grants program. CHI Saint Joseph Health, Saint Joseph Hospital and Saint Joseph East are part of CommonSpirit Health, created in 2019 when Catholic Health Initiatives and Dignity Health came together to create a national health system.

About CHI Saint Joseph Health

CHI Saint Joseph Health, part of CommonSpirit Health, is one of the largest and most comprehensive health systems in the Commonwealth of Kentucky with 100 locations in 20 counties, including hospitals, physician groups, clinics, primary care centers, specialty institutes, home health agencies and an ambulatory Care Center. The hospitals in CHI Saint Joseph Health are Flaget Memorial Hospital, Saint Joseph Berea, Saint Joseph East, Saint Joseph Hospital, Saint Joseph Jessamine, Saint Joseph London, Saint Joseph Mount Sterling, and Women’s Hospital at Saint Joseph East. In total, the health system serves patients in 35 counties statewide. CHI Saint Joseph Health is dedicated to providing a wide array of services toward a goal of building a healthier future for all. CHI Saint Joseph Health embodies a strong mission and faith-based heritage and works through local partnerships to expand access to care in the communities it serves.

About Saint Joseph Hospital 

Saint Joseph Hospital is a 433-bed hospital located in Lexington, Kentucky. Established in 1877 by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth in Kentucky, the facility serves residents of central and eastern Kentucky and is a nationally recognized tertiary medical center. Saint Joseph Hospital is Lexington’s first hospital. The hospital’s original mission was to provide compassionate care to the poor and underserved – a tradition still carried out today.

About Saint Joseph East

Saint Joseph East is a 217-bed full-service community hospital located in the southeastern section of Lexington, Kentucky. Established in 1983, the facility serves residents of central and eastern Kentucky. At Saint Joseph East, ambulatory surgery, 24-hour emergency care and women’s health services are supported through a vast array of inpatient and outpatient programs. 

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