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2010 Board and President's Letter
As we reflect on 2010 at the Kansas Health Foundation, it was truly a year of celebration and transition, a year of progress and commitment. Most of all, it was another year for all of us associated with the Foundation to be able to work together toward the goal of improving the health of all Kansans.
In July, the Foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary, bringing the first quarter century of grant making to an end. Ever since a group of visionary Kansans led the process to sell Wesley Medical Center to Hospital Corporation of America in 1985, the Foundation has worked diligently to address the major health issues facing the people of Kansas. These years of hard work were on full display during our celebration, as we were joined by more than 200 partners, stakeholders and friends for a special luncheon featuring a keynote address from Dr. Richard H. Carmona, the 17th Surgeon General of the United States. His inspiring speech about the importance of public health reaffirms our belief in focusing a portion of our grant dollars toward health promotion and disease prevention.
Amidst the celebration, the board of directors also bid farewell to two longtime friends, while welcoming a pair of new and enthusiastic board members. Dr. Kermit Wedel and Judge Deanell Tacha both leave the board after an astounding 17 years of service. Both joined the board in 1992, and have demonstrated time and time again their love of this state and for the Foundation’s mission. Joining us to begin serving on the board are Donna Shank of Liberal and Michael Lennen of Topeka. The transitions also reached the chair position, as I am honored to begin serving as the chair of the board of directors. The leadership showed by my predecessor Ron Holt has been a tribute to his passion for the Foundation, and I’m so pleased he remains on the board to help guide us in our decision making.
Though the book has been closed on the first 25 years of the Kansas Health Foundation, the story of our organization is really just beginning. No matter the years, I can assure you the board of directors is committed to fostering an atmosphere of excellence in grant making and transparency in operations. The first 25 years have been filled with many successes, yet, more importantly, many lessons learned. It is these lessons that will guide us in the future, and allow the Foundation to continue working toward improving the health of all Kansans.
Longtime stakeholders and supporters of the Kansas Health Foundation will notice something a little different this year about our annual report. In continuing a trend that has taken us in recent years from a printed report to an online-only report, we have once again adjusted the way we view this key piece of accountability. For our 2010 annual report, we’ve decided to maintain our online-only format, but also to scale back the “annual” aspect of our reporting.
During the past year, the Foundation’s primary website, www.kansashealth.org, has undergone a significant renovation and now includes a wealth of information specific to our finances, our grant making and our strategic direction. Today, much of the information we’d previously released only in the annual report is available year round and presented in a dynamic, real-time format that allows us to be more transparent about our work. For this reason, instead of an entirely separate annual report, you will instead see a series of features and links that will take you to areas of the website where you can find the desired information.
As you may have read in Bill Docking’s letter on behalf of the board, 2010 marked 25 years of grant making for the Foundation. Throughout that time, we have been driven by a commitment to be responsible stewards of the wonderful endowment resulting from the sale of Wesley Medical Center. I know our staff joins me in believing it is a privilege to work for an organization whose very mission is to improve the health of all Kansans. With that privilege comes a great responsibility to be accountable, transparent and fiscally responsible. Through this new annual report format, we believe we have taken another step to maintaining our commitment to all three of those areas.
We invite you to take some time to browse through our website and find out more about who we are and what we do. On behalf of the Kansas Health Foundation’s leadership and staff, thank you all for your ongoing commitments to Kansas, philanthropy and the nonprofit world. Just as 2010 is now in the rearview mirror, we have our eyes straight ahead toward 2011 and the continuing commitment to improve the health of all Kansans.
