Photo courtesy of Brook Hill Farm
Photo courtesy of Brook Hill Farm

The Foundation has provided support to a variety of health related programs, including:

• Adult Day Care
• Charity Care
• Fitness and Physical Therapy 
• Free Clinics
• Health Education for Children and Adults
• Health Screenings and Equipment
• Hospice
• Hospital and Nursing Home Equipment
• National Health Organizations’ Initiatives in Bedford
• Non-emergency Medical Transportation
• Nursing and Allied Health Education
• Nutrition and Wellness
• Parish Nursing
• Physicians and Specialists Requirements
• Prescription Medication Assistance
• School Health
• Rescue Squad Support/Emergency Care/EMS
• Substance Abuse Prevention/Mental Health/Domestic Abuse Prevention

 

Photo courtesy of Oakwood Manor Health and Rehabilitation
Photo courtesy of Oakwood Manor Health and Rehabilitation

Bedford Hospice House

The Bedford Community Health Foundation is proud of its long-standing involvement with the project to build a Hospice House in Bedford . Back in 1999, Ivylyn and Ralph Hardy set up the Hardy Family Hospice Fund within the Foundation, in response to the needs that Ivylyn saw during her years as a hospice volunteer. The purpose of this Fund was to endow such a project. This endowment Fund currently stands at over $98,000.

Subsequently, the Foundation acted as fiscal agent for the Hospice House Steering Committee, and helped it to raise over $130,000 towards the cost of building and equipping a Hospice House.

In November, 2005, the Steering Committee dissolved itself, and a new entity, Bedford Hospice House, Inc., with its own 501(c)(3) charitable status, was formed. With the formation of the new Board to run the affairs of the Hospice House, the Foundation ceased to be its fiscal agent.

In July, 2011, Bedford House was completed and opened debt-free, to begin serving hospice patients. BCMF supports its oprating expenses through grants from the Hady Family Endowment.

“The Bedford Community Health Foundation has been a tremendous help in getting us started on our way to a Hospice House. Frankly, we would not be where we are today without them. ” – Jacqueline Wente

Energize Bedford Community Action Coalition

Energize Bedford Community Action Coalition is a grass-roots initiative made up of interested and engaged individuals, representing various organizations within Bedford City/County and from the community at large, who are committed to helping improve the health and well being of Bedford families.

The coalition’s primary goal is to build Bedford’s capacity to foster and promote individual, family and community health, including but not limited to preventing and reducing childhood overweight.

This goal will be accomplished through:

–  Coalition building and strengthening,

–  Identifying barriers and gaps to healthy living within the community,

–  Finding or developing ways to fill those gaps or overcome the barriers,

–  Implementing policy, systems or environmental change to promote healthy living
throughout Bedford.

The following organizations are currently active members of the coalition:

Bedford County Schools
Bedford County Government – Parks and Recreation and Youth Services
Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce
Bedford Area Family YMCA
Bedford Memorial Hospital
Bedford Community Health Foundation
Central VA Community Services Board
Central VA Health District
Path to Healing, Bridge to Wellness
Virginia Cooperative Extension