Philanthropy. In action.

Our Purpose
Every day we work to support and build inclusive, powerful, and healthy communities characterized by racial equity and economically just systems.
Our Mission
Achieve health equity and secure a fair and just region through leadership, advocacy, and resources.

Purpose areas

A desire for change, for racial and economic equity, and for healthier communities lies at the core of every effort we undertake.

People

We advocate for the health of people that make communities thrive. Our efforts focus on whole-person care — from physical and behavioral to oral health and social services. And we support innovative ideas that make our health care system more inclusive.

Power

Powerful communities are healthy communities. We work to adjust the balance of power by encouraging community members to participate in democracy, amplifying community movements, and supporting community leaders and advocates.

Place

The places we live impact how healthy we are. Our approach to improving where we live focuses on two influential social factors: housing and digital access.

Platform

How healthy we are is strongly influenced by our society’s systems, policies, and stories.

To advance racial equity and economic inclusion, Health Forward is partnering with local governments and funders to center equity and race in all policies, systems, and decisions. We are reshaping the way people understand and talk about racial, economic, and health equity. And we are aligning our invested resources in a way that advances our purpose and has a positive impact on the people and communities we serve.

Stories of change

The stories we elevate are as diverse as the communities we serve. Discover some of the ways the Kansas City region is working toward a future of health equity.

01 / 06

How immigration and new Americans build thriving communities in Kansas and Missouri

No matter what is most frequently said of immigration, the truth is that new Americans bring a wealth of skills, experiences, and perspectives that significantly benefit our communities. We want to shed light onto the positive contributions immigrants make to our economies and workplaces on both sides of the state line. 

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02 / 06

An afro-futuristic vision of health for Black Philanthropy Month

As we commemorate Black Philanthropy Month (BPM), we at Health Forward Foundation are inspired to reflect on the significance of this movement and its profound impact on our work in promoting health and economic equity.  

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03 / 06

New policy impact strategist sees a future with more people of color in philanthropy

Like many people who come from non-traditional philanthropic spaces, Robert Gibson never knew this field was an option for him. But now that he's here, he couldn’t imagine being anywhere else.

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04 / 06

An end-of-session legislative update from Health Forward Foundation

We’ve arrived at the end of both regular sessions in Kansas and Missouri. The overall story of the year is that the policy landscape is shifting quickly in some directions but remaining locked in others.

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05 / 06

Health Forward’s trust-based Medicaid re-enrollment campaign

Here's what we learned from our innovative public information campaign designed to elevate the ideas and perspectives of our community partners while minimizing a more prescriptive approach many funders have used in the past.

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06 / 06

How Revolución Educativa is building power within Kansas City’s Latino community

Here’s the backstory on how our partners at Revolución Educativa are building power within Kansas City’s Latino community.

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