A Decade of Making a Difference
Ten years ago, we began our work in Pinellas County with a conviction that communities are stronger and better when all of their members are able to lead healthy lives. During our first 10 years, we’ve invested more than $32 million in our community through grants to dedicated nonprofits working to advance racially equitable health outcomes for our most vulnerable residents. We’ve also collaborated with dozens of partners around common equity-advancing goals, advocated for systemic change in the factors that shape our health, and convened thousands of community members for valuable learning opportunities and community conversations around creating change.
See highlights from our first 10 years of leading, funding, partnering, and advocating to create a community in which all people can lead healthy lives, regardless of race.
Our Approach
Social Determinants of Health
Our health is shaped by so much more than the medical care we receive or our genetic predisposition to illness. The environments and conditions in which we live, work, learn, and grow all influence and impact the health outcomes we see down the road. These include the quality of educational opportunities we have access to throughout our lives, the types of jobs we can hold, the safety and stability of our homes and neighborhoods, the strength and breadth of our social ties, our ability to access high-quality medical care, and so much more.
Together, these factors are often known as the social determinants of health, and experts say they can be responsible for up to 80% of our health outcomes. At the Foundation, we focus our work on the social determinants of health because that’s where we think we can have the biggest impact on our community’s well-being.
To learn more about the social determinants of health, visit the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion’s website.
Systems Change
Many of the health disparities we see in our community are systemic — and so solutions must be, too. From economic opportunity, to education, to cultural competence of care, to environmental health and safety, the solutions we craft and support must focus not just on filling gaps but on addressing the conditions that create those gaps and hold them in place. Systems change involves going upstream of problems to address the root causes of their existence.
At the Foundation, we believe systems change is crucial to creating a community in which good health allows all people to thrive. We must come together to address immediate needs that plague too many people in our community, and that we do so with the urgency that such challenges demand. However, we will never know less need unless we change the conditions that produce those needs. People created the systems that shape our community and our world, so people have the power to change them.
For more on systems change and how we understand and enact it, check out The Water of Systems Change by FSG.
Lead, Fund, Partner, Advocate
Everyone has a role to play in making our community a place where all people can lead healthy lives. At the Foundation, we believe our role is to lead, fund, partner, and advocate for equity in the social factors and conditions that shape our health.
We take part in national conversations about the role of philanthropy, represent health and equity in local dialogue, influence policies and practices that guide outcomes, and invest in our local nonprofits working on the frontlines to advance health and equity in our community. Learn more about our approach to engagement here.
We’re always looking to grow our impact through collaboration. If you have an idea for how we can work together, please reach out to partnership@healthystpetefoundation to start the conversation.