The Saint Luke’s Foundation is committed to health equity for all, especially those for whom systemic racism has served as a barrier. Our work is conducted by addressing the social determinants of health. These social determinants, taken together, do more to impact health equity than medical care itself.
Dear Stakeholders,
Throughout 2017 and the first part of 2018, we developed a strategic road map for the Saint
Luke’s Foundation. Through a very thoughtful process, strengthened by earnest collaboration
between board and staff, we realized our prime objective is to work toward health equity.
Prior to that, we had three important, yet largely separate, strategies, all of which tied
together in service to addressing health and poverty. We dedicated years of human and
financial resources to forwarding our strategies and we are proud of that work and the
partnerships we developed in carrying it out. But, we lacked that one true “North Star”
to guide us and direct our work. This singular purpose now firmly in place, is to work
toward a world of health equity for all. With this purpose in mind, we have been able to
articulate a clearer mission and vision to guide us.
Our vision is that “People thrive as a result of living free of racism and poverty and
experiencing equitable economic opportunities and conditions that enable them to lead
healthier lives.”
Our mission is to “Achieve health equity by addressing the social determinants of health in
Cuyahoga County and in the neighborhood surrounding Saint Luke’s."
Simply put, “health equity” describes a world in which everyone has a fair opportunity to
live a long, healthy life, that is not negatively impacted by race, ethnicity, gender, income,
sexual orientation, neighborhood or other social condition. Of course, we know that healthy
equity does not yet exist. Life expectancies vary widely by zip code across our county. Eighty
percent of what determines a person’s health are social determinants – housing, healthy food,
healthy behaviors, safety, greenspace, stress, education and place. Improving those social
determinants is how the Saint Luke’s Foundation now chooses to make our impact on health, in
partnership with community stakeholders and grantees.
Going forward, the Saint Luke’s Foundation will focus on impacting efforts around:
We are inviting partners to be intentional in this fight for equity, opportunity
and health. This is an issue of race, poverty and access and we can make a difference
together as a community.
My best,
There have been exciting organizational changes at the Saint Luke’s Foundation and we are delighted to introduce you to our new staff.
Heather Torok, serving for 6 years as our Senior Program Officer for Healthy People, has been appointed Vice President for Programs and Strategy. Heather’s leadership at the Foundation both in grant making as well as strategy development and execution will help lead us to the next level of achievement as we work to implement our new strategy. In this role she will lead the program team in all aspects of the grant making work done by the Foundation.
We are delighted that Leah Hudnall joined our team as a program officer coming to us after serving as a Fellow at the Gund Foundation. Leah began her career as an intern at the KeyBank Foundation and has also held roles at the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office and the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning. Leah partners with and supports grantees and potential grantees who work on issues related to our mission. She maintains strong, authentic relationships and communicates Foundation direction, goals, and expectations to our partners.
Monique Williams Kelly is our new Senior Director of Community Engagement. She came to the Foundation with years of experience in community engagement, organizing, and neighborhood development and is also currently an adjunct instructor at Case Western Reserve University’s Mandel School. She is passionate about developing community engagement processes for neighborhood stakeholders and works with Foundation staff to further achievement of our mission in the Woodhill, Buckeye and Mt. Pleasant neighborhoods. Monique is the primary representative of Saint Luke’s Foundation in relationships with neighborhood residents, businesses and organizations, using her experience and passion for her work to affect positive change.
Gail Miller has just joined our team as our new office manager. Gail comes to us with more than 24 years of experience at various Cleveland Clinic hospitals. In her role, she will help to hold us together in myriad ways from supporting the board of directors to managing the remaining business matters related to the old Saint Luke’s Hospital.
The Saint Luke’s team has the right balance of compassion, commitment and focus to head into the future, supporting efforts to achieve health equity in Cuyahoga County and our neighborhood.
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