The Well foundation
History
The Well Foundation, formerly named the Goshen Hospital & Health Care Foundation, was created in 1969 to provide strength and stability to Goshen General Hospital so that future generations might have access to high-quality health care. The foundation gave more than $6 million to the health needs of the surrounding community.
Its founders, a group of caring people who worked together to give back to the community, organized the foundation with the intent of always having local management. For nearly 50 years, the Well Foundation operated independently before the assets were transferred to the Community Foundation in March 2017. Many of the founding volunteers remain engaged, as committee members, in grant-making decisions surrounding healthcare in our community. The Fund has approximately $200,000 to award each year.
The Basics
- Requests of $1,000 or greater
- Single year, challenge, or multi-year requests.
- Address one or both of the priority areas of Health and Wellness
- Provide direct benefit for the people of Elkhart County
- Application is available annually
- Eight week timeline for application review and recommendation process. Decisions are communicated mid-November.
Values and Priorities
The Well Foundation Fund Committee awards grants in support of projects and/or programs with a focus on Health and Wellness serving the people of Goshen and the greater population of Elkhart County.
Organizations classified as 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charities by the Internal Revenue Service and public entities such as schools*, municipalities*, governmental units, and chambers of commerce may also qualify.
How to Apply
Nonprofit organizations submit an online grant application, which requires a username and password to log in. Contact Program Officer Vonnie Trumble as the first step to apply for a grant. Organizations must anticipate 8 weeks from application closing date to review process.
The Well Foundation Fund does not support requests for grants for individuals, budget deficits / debt reduction, expenses incurred prior to a grant proposal period, church buildings and grounds (exceptions may be given for daycare ministries), requests to support proselytizing, political party activities, scholarships for post-secondary education, and policy/lobbying. Organizations with religious affiliation are not excluded from making grant applications but the project or program must be nonsectarian.
Grant Review and Approval Process
Grant applications are first reviewed by a Community Foundation Program Officer. If the program officer has questions or sees a need for further clarification of the grant request, the officer will contact the organization for additional information. Following the initial review, all requests will be forwarded to the Well Foundation Fund Committee for review and recommendations. Funding decisions are approved by the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees.
All requests will be given equal and fair consideration among a full slate of substantially competitive requests and are not guaranteed funding.
Grant Reporting
Recipients of the Well Foundation Fund will be required to complete a grant report. A site visit may also be required,.
The due date of the grant report and site visit will be included with any grant documentation supplied along with the check. This information will also be provided by the program officer in their follow-up phone call.
