Funds will be distributed to programs that address regional health challenges including homelessness and access to mental health services.

ORLANDO – AdventHealth is distributing more than $1.2 million to recipients of its 2022 community impact grants, giving eight Central Florida nonprofits the opportunity to bolster their missions.

“AdventHealth’s dedication to providing whole-person care goes beyond our hospital walls and into the communities we serve,” said Tricia Smith-Edris, chief strategy and innovation officer for the AdventHealth Central Florida Division. “With the help of the community impact grants, these nonprofits are able to continue breaking down barriers, improving the health of residents across Central Florida.”

The grant recipients are:

• New Image Youth Center, Mobile NIYC: Bringing More Good to Your ’Hood: The grant will allow NIYC, which provides mental health services to youth in Parramore, to support a program manager and their recently launched mobile unit. The bus brings positive youth development activities, individual and group counseling and play therapy to 250 children in neighborhoods such as Parramore, Oak Ridge and Pine Hills.
• Matthew’s Hope Ministries, Matthew’s Home Mental Health Services Initiative: Moving Forward in West Orange County: Funding will support a trainer who will provide trauma training, de-escalation and similar trainings to staff, volunteers and guests. The trainer will also provide life-skills training to 40 transitional house guests.
• Pace Center for Girls, Reach Program: This program will support 150 girls in Osceola and Orange counties by providing trauma responsive practices, including therapy, case management and family support sessions. Reach therapists will travel to provide services in the girls’ homes, schools, communities, or virtually to ensure transportation and finances are not a barrier to services.
• AMIKids Orlando, behavioral and mental health support for at-risk youth: AMIKids Orlando will add trauma therapy to their program, including Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) by a part-time AMIkids Behavioral Health Master Level Counselor to 150 AMIKids youth.
• Camaraderie Foundation, veteran family counseling services program: This grant will fund an additional full-time case manager, doubling Camaraderie Foundation’s capacity, to connect over 1,000 veterans and their families to counseling and support services.
• The Children’s Home Society of Central Florida, Wraparound Seminole Program: This evidenced based program will offer individualized care planning and connect 42 high-risk youth and their families to necessary resources to divert youth from high-end mental health placements.
• Simeon Resource and Development Center for Men, Inc., Project IMPAC: Information, Mobilization, Prevention and Access to Care: Funding will support four graduate-level presenters to educate 28 pastors and 1,200 congregation members on signs and symptoms of mental and behavioral health and establish permanent resource booths at 28 churches. A referral pipeline between the pastors and Simeon will be established to connect residents with care.
• One Heart for Women and Children, Inc., access and equity in local food deserts: One Heart for Women and Children, Inc. will support a full-time outreach manager who will coordinate nutritious food delivery to 55,000 residents of Parramore, Pine Hills and Eatonville. The outreach manager will also connect residents to services such as benefits enrollment, employability resources, and program evaluation.

“There is a need for more access to resources across Central Florida as well as a vehicle to deliver important and timely information, especially for mental and behavioral health care. AdventHealth's support will have a profound impact for several generations,” said Larry Williams, executive director of Simeon Resource and Development Center for Men, Inc. "With this grant, we will be able to accomplish our work, and the impact of our program will amplify in our community." 

With this support, these nonprofits will have the power to continue to improve the lives of Central Florida residents.

“As a not-for-profit health system, one of our priorities is to invest back into our communities,” said Mike Griffin, senior vice president of advocacy and public policy at AdventHealth. “We are honored to give a helping hand to our nonprofit partners, because we know it takes a collaborative approach to address our region’s pressing health challenges.”