Wellness Fund

About the Wellness Fund

The goals and principles of the Wellness Fund are currently in development with the residents of San Bernardino. Therefore, this page will be updated periodically to reflect the community’s vision of the Wellness Fund. Nevertheless, the founding members of the Collaborative envisioned the Wellness Fund to be an innovative approach to integrate the residents of San Bernardino City to play an intimate role in deciding what projects, activities, and initiatives to fund for the wellness of the community they live, work, and play in. 

The Wellness Fund will have a governance structure with residents and diverse stakeholders in the membership. With resident input at the forefront of the vision,. the members will develop goals and principles for the fund. Afterward, the members, with help from the Collaborative’s network, will solicit funding partners and grants to expand the Wellness Fund. 

Pilot of the Wellness Fund

Uplift San Bernardino / Making Hope Happen Foundation saw the opportunity to pilot the Wellness Fund in partnership with Kaiser Permanente through the “Healthy Homes” grant. When Kaiser allocated the grant in November 2023, Uplift San Bernardino / Making Hope Happen Foundation utilized the Wellness Fund as an innovative approach to integrate the residents of San Bernardino City to play an intimate role in selecting housing developers to create homes right here in their backyard. To determine the eligibility criteria, we convened our residents and other stakeholders, and it was then agreed that each developer would need to meet a minimum threshold of 25 community votes in order to receive a Wellness Fund allocation. In the end, 6 projects were funded to yield an estimated 225 housing units across the entire spectrum of housing: transitional/temporary, permanent supportive housing, recuperative care, and home ownership opportunities for low-to-moderate income households.

It was an absolute honor and privilege for Uplift San Bernardino / Making Hope Happen Foundation to play a role in elevating the civic muscle and belonging of the community we serve every day to ensure residents are instilled with a significant responsibility to say yes, or no, to developers that want to create housing in the City of San Bernardino.