A record $507,065.97 was dispersed to organizations across the region Wednesday night at the Holiday Inn in Marquette. The Superior Health Foundation hosted its annual fall grants celebration awarding money to nonprofit organizations from all across the Upper Peninsula. From left, Jim LaJoie, SHF executive director, and Bruce Seely, SHF board president. (Journal photo by Amy Grigas)

MARQUETTE — A record $507,000 was dispersed to organizations across the region Wednesday night at the Holiday Inn of Marquette, with a major focus being improved transportation for people with medical appointments.

The Superior Health Foundation hosted its annual fall grants celebration awarding money to nonprofit organizations with health-centered initiatives from all across the Upper Peninsula.

“It’s the largest amount of grant dollars we have awarded to date,” said Jim LaJoie, executive director of the SHF.

The foundation awarded nearly $25,000 in mini-grants and more than $82,000 in large grants to more than 20 organizations, as well as a $400,000 grant to address non-emergent medical transportation issues in the Upper Peninsula.

The large proactive grant was awarded to Michigan Public Transit Association, in partnership with the Michigan Transportation Connection.

The money will go toward Connect UP, a project aimed at a unified approach to tie in public transit agencies across the U.P. to work together to provide safe, reliable transportation for patients to get to and from non-emergent medical appointments.

Involved in the project are partnering agencies Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly, War Memorial Hospital, and U.P. Healthcare Solutions, which will each receive a share of the funds to implement various parts of the program.

“Non-emergent transportation, and lack thereof, has long been a well-discussed topic in the Upper Peninsula,” LaJoie said in a press release. “Despite knowing the complexities of addressing this issue, our U.P.-wide board of directors is committed to finding solutions to assure patients and their families get to and from non-emergent medical appointments safely and effectively.”

The $400,000 award — accepted by Michigan Public Transit Association Executive Director Clark Harder — is part of a two-year grant, with the organization expected to receive another $400,000 next year.

“To award more than a half a million dollars in an evening is incredible,” said Bruce Seely, Ph.D., president of the SHF Board of Directors.

Since forming in September 2012, the SHF has provided more than $2.7 million in grant funding to hundreds of different nonprofit, health-centered U.P. organizations.

“The Superior Health Foundation emerged from the sale of the former Marquette General Hospital to for-profit Duke LifePoint on Sept. 1, 2012,” said LaJoie. “As part of that sale, SHF was awarded funding that was invested in the market. Investment earnings from that corpus of money go back to the good people of the Upper Peninsula in the form of grants.”

A six-person grants committee comprised of SHF board members decides how grants are awarded. They meet a month or two prior to the spring and fall grants celebrations to review, discuss and vote on the grant applications received.

“We arguably had the best assortment of grant applications in our history,” said Sheri Davie, chairwoman for the SHF Grants Committee and vice president of the SHF Board of Directors.

Each application is carefully reviewed and each grant must align with the SHF’s mission, which is “to assist with unmet health care needs, with health education, and with programs and research on preventing illness and promoting health.”

For more information on the Superior Health Foundation visit its website at www.superiorhealthfoundation.org or call 906-225-6914.

Amy Grigas can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 243.