Community Health & Engagement

St. Luke's 2025 CHIF grants assist groups addressing key community health needs

People affected by cancer practicing their fly fishing casts on the lawn. — CHIF grants have benefited groups of all kinds in the communities we serve, even those helping affected by cancer with fly fishing experiences.

By Laura CrawfordLast Updated January 10, 2025

St. Luke’s mission — to improve the health of people in the communities we serve — goes beyond top-notch clinical care. One key method is through its Community Health Improvement Fund, which invests in our community partners through financial support or in-kind donations.

This year’s community investment includes support for 69 qualifying organizations across the Treasure Valley, West Treasure Valley, Elmore County, Valley County, Adams County, and the Wood River regions. The CHIF amount awarded this year is $650,000. St. Luke’s also is investing an additional $257,250 to 28 qualifying organizations in 2025 in the Magic Valley.

St. Luke's staff member drawing blood at a community health fair in Jerome. — CHIF grants support community health events.

When choosing how to distribute grants, St. Luke’s gave special consideration to organizations whose proposals target significant health needs identified through St. Luke’s Community Health Needs Assessment and social drivers of health such as safe housing and neighborhoods, transportation and access to nutritious foods.

Because the CHNA is both quantitative and qualitative, it takes into consideration the voice of local experts and community members to identify needs from their lived experience. Consideration is also given to organizations that work collaboratively and have equity-driven approaches to address community health needs.

“In addition to guiding the types of health improvement programs we provide, St. Luke’s uses this information to guide our community benefit actions including this grant support and collaboration with community partners,” said Theresa McLeod, St. Luke’s Health System administrator of community health and engagement.

Prioritized significant community health needs include:

Safe, affordable housing and homelessness.
Behavioral health, including mental health and well-being, suicide prevention and substance misuse.
Access to affordable health care, including oral and vision health.
Access to health-related services, including improving language and cultural barriers.
High cost of living, including caregiving and early learning.

Here is how just a few of the programs St. Luke’s is supporting make a difference:

Treasure Valley

The Boise Bike Project promotes the personal, social and environmental benefits of bicycling. Through inclusive access to refurbished bicycles, repair equipment and empowering education experiences, they strive to build a stronger and more diverse bicycling community.

Child using adaptive ski equipment on the mountain with two adults instructors. — From bicycling to skiing, CHIF grants are helping kids of all kinds stay active and enjoy the outdoors.

This year’s CHIF grant will support Boise Bike Project’s 2025 events, including Open Streets Boise and the annual Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway.

The Open Streets Boise event, formally known as Goathead Fest, promotes physical activity and bicycling recreation, and social interaction while advocating for bike/pedestrian infrastructure and highlighting local businesses and community partners.

The Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway provides more than 600 “dream bikes” to kids who otherwise might not have a bike. With the help of referral partners, children draw pictures of their dream bikes and they work to match those dreams — collecting, refurbishing and decorating bikes to make the kids’ dreams a reality. With every bike donated, an individual receives a helmet, lock, lights and a lesson on how to care for their bike and how to ride safely.

Elmore County

The Three Island Senior Center, serving the communities of Glenns Ferry, King Hill and Hammett, has been dependent on community donations to meet its annual budget costs to operate the center and meal support. Over the last several years, donations have become inconsistent, leaving the senior center with an annual shortfall.

To help address budget challenges, the center is taking a new approach. A community food cooperative is being formed and is piloting a program that will bring together local growers, producers, farmers and ranchers. The co-op will then offer the senior center the opportunity to purchase food in bulk at a reduced cost with the balance of the cost donated by the farmers and ranchers.

The senior center will preserve food items purchased from the food co-op that will then be used throughout the year to serve meals at the center and support the Meals on Wheel program.

The program is expected to save the center money, increase its meal capacity and reduce the reliance on cash donations. The CHIF grant will be used to purchase commercial-grade food processing equipment and support purchasing food from the cooperative.

Magic Valley

The Idaho Playground Project is a statewide nonprofit working to make playgrounds across the state more inclusive and accessible to all children. The group’s first project was completed at Sawtooth Elementary School in Twin Falls and is completing a second project in Twin Falls this summer.

Two children reading a book together. — Programs helping children's literacy have been CHIF recipients.

Additionally, IPP provides advocacy and technical assistance to schools across the state. There are 626 elementary playgrounds in Idaho and fewer than 100 have playgrounds for children with varied abilities.

This year’s CHIF grant will provide the funds needed for the Main Kids Choice Ramped Tree Structure, a main component of the new playground structure being created at Harrison Elementary School in Twin Falls.

McCall

In 2023, West Central Mountain Youth Advocacy Coalition started the Hope Squad. The Hope Squad is a peer-to-peer, school-based suicide prevention program that trains and mentors students nominated by peers to perform intentional outreach with fellow students.

Hope Squad members are peer advocates who recognize struggling students and help connect students with a trusted adult advisor and resources.

This year nine schools throughout Valley and Adams counties have initiated Hope Squads in their schools.

Their CHIF grant will support hosting a multi-day education and team building retreat for Hope Squad members and facilitators in partnership with the University of Idaho’s McCall Outdoor Science School. The retreat will prepare students before the 2025-2026 school year.

West Treasure Valley

The Angel Wings Network’s mission is to bring hope and vital support to patients, survivors, caregivers and families impacted by cancer in rural communities.

This year’s CHIF grant will support the group’s “Wheels to Recovery” program. It offers free transportation to patients who would otherwise not be able to get to their cancer treatment appointments.

Volunteer drivers are trained to provide safe, reliable and dependable transportation free of charge. Fuel cards are also available for family members and caregivers to provide transportation without having to worry about the added expense.

A portion of the grant will also be used to support Angel Wings Network’s annual walk/run fundraiser held in the fall.

Wood River

Family Health Services is a federally-qualified community health center that provides comprehensive, high-quality medical, dental and behavioral health services that are culturally sensitive, affordable and accessible to the people of South Central Idaho. All services are offered at a reduced cost, based on family size and annual household income.

Woman holding crate of food at food bank distribution center. — Addressing food insecurity has been a key part of CHIF grants in the past to help the communities we serve.

Funds from this year’s CHIF grant will help support the purchase of new and updated equipment that will help the Bellevue dental clinic resume full-time operations with a full-time dentist (which it had not had since 2023) and dental hygiene services.

Family Health Services’ goal is to increase access to affordable dental services in the Bellevue area to low-income and uninsured patients. In the previous year, 32% of patients were low-income and 44% were uninsured.

Apply for CHIF

St. Luke’s begins accepting CHIF grant applications in September from qualifying organizations in the Treasure Valley, Elmore County, McCall and Wood River regions. Grants are awarded the following December or early January.

Magic Valley accepts applications in late summer/early fall and awards grants in November.

Each application is reviewed by multiple committees, subject matter experts and St. Luke’s leaders. As part of the grant award, receiving organizations must submit an “Activation Report” by Oct. 1, outlining how the grant dollars were used and where the impact was made.

Find program application forms on the Community Health Improvement Fund Grants page.

2025 CHIF Recipients

Advocates Against Family Violence

Angel Wings Network, Inc.

Assistance League of Boise, Boise

Assistance League of Boise, Canyon County

Because Kids Grieve, Inc.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Idaho

Blaine County Charitable Fund

Blaine County Seniors Council

Boise Bicycle Project

Boise Public Schools Education Foundation

Boise Rescue Mission

Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County

Boys & Girls Clubs of Canyon County

Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Treasure Valley

CASA of Southwest Idaho (Third District Guardian ad Litem Program)

Cascade School District #422

Charitable Assistance to Community’s Homeless, Inc.

City of Boise Parks & Recreation Dept.

City of Good

City of Mountain Home Parks and Recreation

City of New Meadows

Corpus Christi House

Donnelly Food Pantry

Family Advocacy Center and Education Services, Inc.

Family Advocate Program, Inc.

Family Health Services Corp.

Family Justice Center Foundation of Idaho

Far + Wise Foundation

Giraffe Laugh, Inc.

Girls on the Run - Idaho, Inc.

Higher Ground USA, Inc.

Idaho Diabetes Youth Programs dba Hodia

Idaho Farmer’s Market Association

Idaho Foodbank Warehouse, Inc

Idaho Voices for Children Foundation

Idaho Youth Ranch, Inc.

Ignite Idaho Family Resource Center

Insight Matters Inc.

Jannus Inc.

Life’s Kitchen

Marsing Joint School District

McCall Senior Center - Meals on Wheels

McCall Nordic and Biathlon Ski Club

Men’s Second Chance Living

Mountain Home West Elementary School

Mountain Home School District #193

Mountain Home Senior Center

Nampa Schools Foundation

Parma Area Senior Citizens Inc.

Recovery United, Inc.

Ride for Joy Therapeutic Riding Program

Rise Up 2 Thrive, Inc.

River Discovery

Ronald McDonald House Charities Idaho

SAVES – Meadows Valley Fire District

St. Michael’s Episcopal Cathedral

South Central Public Health District

Special Olympics

The Children's Home Society of Idaho

The Jesse Tree of Idaho

The Mentoring Network, Inc.

The Salvation Army, Boise

The Salvation Army, Caldwell

The Salvation Army, Nampa

The Shepherd's Home, Inc.

Three Island Senior Center, Glenns Ferry, Idaho

Treasure Valley Food Coalition

University of Idaho Foundation on behalf of McCall Outdoor Science School

Valley Regional Transit

West Central Mountain Youth Advocacy Coalition

Women’s and Children’s Alliance, Inc.

Wood River Community YMCA