Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) recently awarded eight Healthy Impact grants totaling $685,705. Alpine Historical Society, Family Promise Mat-Su, Mat-Su Borough/Talkeetna Public Library and Community Resource Center, Palmer Amateur Hockey Association, Wasilla Area Seniors, Wasilla Youth Baseball, United Way Anchorage, and Upper Susitna Seniors, Inc. will receive grants supporting projects to improve the health and wellness of people living in the Mat-Su Borough.

Alpine Historical Society’s award of $72,930 will be used for construction of a community-build playground at Alpine Historical Park in Sutton. Sutton presently has few opportunities for family-oriented health promotion activities, and the new playground will help remedy that.

Family Promise Mat-Su was awarded $195,500 to purchase their Nelson Ave. facility. This will reduce the organization’s overhead costs, allowing funds to be used directly to support and expand its mission of preventing homelessness.

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough requested and received $135,000 to help fund construction of a new 7,840 square foot Talkeetna Library/Community Resource Center. The majority of the funding for this project came from the State of Alaska and the Mat-Su Borough.

A grant of $24,000 to Palmer Amateur Hockey Association will help fund two projects to benefit the community. Part of the funds will be used to purchase cross-ice safety boards, and part will be used to build an outdoor hockey rink that will be open to the public at no charge.

Wasilla Area Seniors was awarded $120,000 for its “Continuing Care Community” project, which includes an industry needs assessment, industry/organization feasibility study, organizational strategic planning, and industry-specific business planning for the organization.

Wasilla Youth Baseball will use its grant of $35,000 to construct a multi-function pavilion to be used to extend practice time for players at the beginning of the season when the fields are not yet available for use and to provide a covered space for ceremonial uses and for parents and families to sit during games.

A $68,875 grant to United Way Anchorage will allow the organization to establish a navigator position in the Mat-Su to guide consumers, small businesses and their employees as they look for health coverage options through the Health Insurance Marketplace. United Way Anchorage will partner closely with Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Mat-Su Health Services and Sunshine Community Health Center on this project.

Upper Susitna Seniors Inc. will receive a grant of $34,400 to purchase a multi-use tractor and trailer. The tractor will include a front-mounted snow blower and enclosed cab. It will allow the organization to save on the cost of snow removal from its campus and will also be beneficial to the organization’s Meals on Wheels program, because there have been times in the past where some recipients were not able to receive their meals due to heavy snow accumulation. Volunteers will use the new tractor to clear snow for these home bound seniors.

Healthy Impact grants from the Mat-Su Health Foundation fund projects over $15,000 that improve the health and wellness of people living in the Mat-Su Borough. The application period for the next round of these grants will open on Dec. 2 and close on Jan. 10, 2014. Interested local non-profit organizations can learn more at www.healthymatsu.org

About Mat-Su Health Foundation: Mat-Su Health Foundation (MSHF) is the official business name of Valley Hospital Association, Inc., which shares ownership in Mat-Su Regional Medical Center. In this capacity, the MSHF board members and representatives actively participate in the governance of Mat-Su’s community hospital and protect the community’s interest in this important healthcare institution through board oversight. The MSHF invests its assets into charitable works that improve the health and wellness of Alaskans living in Mat-Su. More information is available at www.healthymatsu.org.