September 2024

Welcome to Nantahala Health Foundation's monthly newsletter. There's no shortage of newsletters you can subscribe to, so THANK YOU for reading ours today. If you find value in this content, please share this information with your friends and colleagues.

In this Edition

• YYA: What We Learned
• Apply Today for 2025 N+N Cohorts
• NHF to Join READY Foundations
• State Reports on Effort to Transform Behavioral Health System
• Improve Housing Opportunities
• Recovery Friendly Workplaces
• One-Day Now + Next Available to Orgs
• NHF Partner Services Available

Creating Generational Change for Vulnerable Youth + Young Adults

You may recall that in last month’s newsletter that we talked about receiving 44 grant proposals outlining plans to address barriers to health and well-being for youth and young adults. Now that we have had more time to analyze the projects proposed seeking to create generational change for those most at risk, we wanted to share some of our findings:

While we knew health and well-being barriers impacting those ages 5 - 24 are tremendous, we were pleased to learn that organizational leaders across our region are laser-focused on identifying the root causes of these barriers and are taking action to remove them.

We are excited to invest in projects to address this priority. However, our investment dollars alone will only scratch the surface of what is needed to ensure these young people and future generations of our youth have what they need to succeed.

It Makes Sense To Act Now: Addressing the most egregious issues facing our youth today means spending fewer dollars to support them later in life. If you can, please consider showing you agree by making a monthly financial contribution to this effort. All donations go to work immediately in Western North Carolina to benefit our young people's future.

Join a Now + Next Cohort in 2025

Now + Next's 2025 cohort dates and locations will be announced soon. So don't wait. Make sure you have a seat at this table.

Features of this unique-to-WNC organizational and individualized capacity-building program include:

• Small, in-person cohorts of 10-14 professionals
• Diverse, intergenerational participation
• Representation from multiple organizations
• Applied + personalized learning
• Highly collaborative environment
• Networking + community building
• Manageable schedule
• Informative + interactive sessions
• Actionable practices to apply immediately
• Reflective + applied work to complete before + between sessions
• Optional virtual meetups to provide support
• All this is offered because building community + growing deep connections are important to the future of our region.

Use the link below to indicate your interest in joining a 2025 cohort, then share this information with a friend or colleague who is as passionate about improving health and well-being in our region as you are.

NHF Chosen to Join ARC's

First READY Foundation Cohort

Nantahala Health Foundation is excited to announce that our staff will join the Appalachian Regional Commission's first READY Foundations cohort this fall.

As the only North Carolina foundation chosen to join, we are excited to gather with other foundations from around the Appalachian region to enhance our philanthropic offerings by further strengthening our capacity in the following areas:    

·   Foundation-specific financial management. 

·   Endowment investing and accounting. 

·   Affiliate models. 

·   Community-centric fundraising and grantmaking. 

·   Community-rooted collective impact agendas. 

·   Mission and strategy development. 

Communications strategy. 

"By deepening our skills in these areas, we see our foundation playing an even larger role in the region's work to eliminate barriers to health and well-being," said NHF Executive Director Lori Bailey.

NCDHHS Releases Behavioral Health System Transformation Report

Transforming North Carolina’s Behavioral Health System: Investing in a System That Delivers Whole-Person Care When and Where People Need It outlines North Carolina's efforts to transform the public behavioral health system to deliver high-quality, equitable, accessible care that meets people where they are in their communities.

Of the $835 million allocated to this effort, key investments include:

Improving Housing Opportunities

Communities wishing to apply must submit an online application by October 18.

One-Day N+N Workshops Available

Nantahala Health Foundation and Strategic Leadership Consulting have partnered to bring Now + Next training to your organization.

Now + Next alumni and Nantahala Health Foundation partner organizations are invited to host a one-day workshop for their leaders. This training is designed to help organizations capitalize on the power of the Now + Next leadership experience.

Benefits include…



●     Improving listening skills and presence to create more intentional leadership.

●     Developing coaching skills to support growth throughout the organization.

●     Becoming aware of change processes to bring organizational alignment.

Our grant-making priorities are designed to create a strong network of organizations by investing in your strategies to remove barriers to health.

At Nantahala Health Foundation, we build partnerships with forward-thinking organizations focused on improving the overall health of the region. 

Our Values Statement

Our values speak to who we are as an organization and how we intend to achieve our mission. Read our full statement of values and let us know what you think.

Grantmaking | Capacity Building | Elevating Leaders

About Us | Our Priorities | Our Values

Financial information about our organization and a copy of our license are available from the N.C. State Solicitation Licensing Section at (919) 807-2214. The license is not an endorsement by the State.