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CHKD Receives $45,000 Grant from Rite Aid Healthy Futures

 To Improve Local Families’ Access to Food and Nutritional Resources

Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters has received a $45,000 grant from Rite Aid Healthy Futures, designed to help expand equitable care and improve health outcomes for children in underserved and vulnerable neighborhoods.

The funding comes through the charity’s Connecting Communities signature initiative and is part of an overall $3 million investment in more than 30 children’s hospitals serving Rite Aid communities.

The goal of Connecting Communities is to help major institutions like children’s hospitals collaborate with the neighborhoods around them in new and deeper ways, and ultimately connect people and places with the resources needed to advance health and racial equity.  

Initial funding will support a wide range of hospitals and their community-based programs across 15 states. Funded programs concentrate on screening for food insecurity, food distribution, and nutrition education, and aim to help eliminate root obstacles that keep communities from achieving health and wellness.

Locally, General Academic Pediatrics, a CHKD primary care practice located in Children’s Pavilion at 401 Gresham Drive, will take the lead on the grant, with screening to identify which patients and families  would benefit from a pantry bag of shelf stable food as well as assistance with referrals for food and other needs.

“Philanthropy helps provide not only life-saving medical care, but also the strong support services children and families need to help stay healthy,” said Kate Ryan, philanthropy officer at CHKD. “We are extremely grateful to Rite Aid Healthy Futures for recognizing this need and partnering with us to create healthier futures for our patients.”

The grants are funded through Rite Aid’s KidCents fundraising program. Generous Rite Aid customers can round up their purchases online or in-store to support children’s health and wellness. Healthy Futures reinvests the funds into Rite Aid communities through programs like Connecting Communities.

“Expanding equitable care doesn’t start in the emergency room. It starts in our neighborhoods,” said Matt DeCamara, executive director of Rite Aid Healthy Futures. “Though the needs are great, so are the opportunities for progress. Children’s hospitals already play a critical role delivering vital medical care, and many of these institutions have developed impactful programs to serve kids, families and communities in ways that extend beyond traditional medical care. Working together, we can ensure everyone has what they need to live longer, healthier lives.”

Rite Aid Healthy Futures, formerly known as The Rite Aid Foundation, is a public charity dedicated to driving change in communities, with emphasis on underserved neighborhoods, focusing on the areas of health, wellness, race and equity. Together with our donors, Rite Aid associates, community partners and neighbors, we help lift up local neighborhoods through caring actions and investments that make a real difference in people’s lives. Healthy Futures is proud to be affiliated with Rite Aid, which provides an array of whole being health products and services for the entire family through over 2,000 retail pharmacy locations across 17 states. Visit www.RiteAidHealthyFutures.org to learn more.

CHKD is the only freestanding children’s hospital in Virginia and serves the medical and surgical needs of children throughout greater Hampton Roads, the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and northeastern North Carolina. The not-for-profit CHKD Health System operates primary care pediatric practices, surgical practices, multi-service health centers, urgent care centers, and satellite offices throughout its service region. In 2019, CHKD broke ground on a 60-bed, 14-story hospital and outpatient center on its campus to address the mental health crisis facing our youth. The new tower on CHKD’s campus in Norfolk will open in 2022. Learn more at CHKD.org.

Rite Aid Healthy Futures Media Contact
Andrew Staub
Communications Manager
Rite Aid Healthy Futures
Andrew.Staub@riteaid.com
717-649-2437 (Text messages OK)