Palm Health Foundation Releases Annual Report

Feb 21, 2024

Palm Health Foundation, Palm Beach County’s leading community foundation for health, announced the release of its 2023 annual report. Entitled "Humanizing Health," the report describes the foundation's innovative approach to health philanthropy and how it is maximizing the impact of donor contributions.



The foundation’s president and CEO, Patrick McNamara, believes the report demonstrates the value of community collaboration fueled by philanthropy. “We are prioritizing the lived experiences of our neighbors and fostering community collaboration to guide our solutions to Palm Beach County’s greatest health needs,” he said. “Artists and musicians are coming together with world-class brain institutions to enhance the well-being of residents with Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases. Scholarship donors are developing bonds with nursing and behavioral health students. And health, government, and faith leaders are joining together with residents to create new solutions for health and wellness in their communities.”


The foundation granted $2.4 million in 2023 and reported nearly $86 million in total assets. Highlights from the report include:


  • Advancing Brain Health. Through The NeuroArts Fund, the foundation and its donors and partners are pioneering an emerging “brain coast,” with a vision to become as highly recognized as Florida’s Space Coast. Funding in 2023 supported learning about the neuroarts’ potential to impact mental health and neurodegenerative diseases.


  • Building a Culture of Health. A collaboration with fellow Palm Beach County funders resulted in the new Community Changemakers Fund at Palm Health Foundation with $250,000 raised in 2023. A portion of the funds supported education for nearly 40 local change agents to advance their skills and increase their networks. The majority of the fund will support grants for resident and community-led ideas to address health inequities in vulnerable neighborhoods in 2024.


  • Strengthening the Health Professions. Over $192,000 in scholarships was awarded to nursing and behavioral health students with lived experience and a desire to serve Palm Beach County’s diverse communities, especially those with health disparities.


The report also shines a light on the meaningful connections made between donors and beneficiaries. With Palm Health Foundation's donor-advised funds, families can build their philanthropic legacy while supporting the change leaders in our community.


“Our donors help us fulfill our mission and our aspiration for all residents to have opportunities to thrive and reach their full health potential,” said David Wisehaupt, immediate past chair of the foundation. “We always come to better solutions together than any of us would come to alone.”



About Palm Health Foundation 
Palm Health Foundation is Palm Beach County’s community foundation for health. With the support of donors and a focus on results, the foundation builds strong community partnerships, respects diverse opinions, advocates for its most vulnerable neighbors, and inspires innovative solutions to lead change for better health now and for generations to come. The foundation supports health equity for Palm Beach County residents of all backgrounds, heritage, education, incomes, and states of well-being. Palm Health Foundation has invested more than $93 million in Palm Beach County health since 2001. For more information about Palm Health Foundation, visit palmhealthfoundation.org or call (561) 833-6333.

07 Oct, 2024
Leaders believe shared vision, determination, science, education, collaboration, and investment can transform the South Florida region and change the world.
07 Oct, 2024
Palm Beach County leaders will guide foundation’s grantmaking initiatives to help residents thrive and reach their full health potential. 
18 Sep, 2024
Palm Health Foundation behavioral health scholarship recipient Beatriz Moreno remembers the first time she was made aware that she was a first-generation student. “I was applying to colleges in my junior year of high school with my high school counselor and I had to answer what level of education my parents had completed,” said the Argentine American scholar. “As I sat there, I realized that neither of my parents had completed a college degree in the United States. I was the eldest child to start that journey.” It was the beginning of her educational pursuit to combine her interest in behavioral health with her passion for helping people from Hispanic cultures.  “Stigma surrounds mental health in the Hispanic community,” she said. “It prevents people from receiving the proper supports, especially when acculturating to a new way of life. And it affects their children.”
30 Aug, 2024
In April, Palm Health Foundation and partners convened at the Community Changemakers Gathering to celebrate the Culture of Health Network that formed The Community Changemakers Fund , and learn about the projects that applied for and received funding to continue their health advancement work.
30 Aug, 2024
The Palm Beach County School District’s Department of Behavioral and Mental Health provided a Summer Institute for our 180 school behavioral health professionals, focusing on how the neuroarts contribute to mental health and well-being.
31 Jul, 2024
If anyone saw “Anthony Cannonball” Cannon do his famous dance to Teddy Pendergrass’s “Get Up, Get Down, Get Funky, Get Loose,” at the Fourth Annual Glades Tri-Cities Senior Citizens Prom on June 1, 2024, they would have thought he was back in high school.
31 Jul, 2024
Patty’s love for Palm Health Foundation’s innovative approach led her and Peter to open The Cooke Family Fund, a donor advised fund dedicated to brain health, mental health, and the neuroarts.
26 Jul, 2024
A Conversation with Palm Health Foundation Trustee Nathan E. Nason
26 Jul, 2024
Palm Health Foundation, Palm Beach County’s community foundation for health, has appointed Ernest Dumenigo as accounting and grants coordinator.
29 May, 2024
We celebrated National Nurses Week (May 6-12) by honoring nurses near and dear to Palm Health Foundation in South Florida Hospital News’ “Salute to Nursing” issue.
More Posts
Share by: