The Foundation is a non-profit 501(C)3 organization that supports seniors and their caregivers in our community.
In the past two years, the WellMed Charitable Foundation has contributed over $3 million to the community.
The WellMed Charitable Foundation was established in 2006 by Dr. George Rapier III, a noted geriatrician who is also the Chairman of the Board. The Foundation is a non-profit 501(C)3 organization that supports seniors and their caregivers in our community with a special emphasis on wellness, prevention, and living with chronic illness.
In the past two years, the WellMed Charitable Foundation has contributed over $3 million to the community. It is the philanthropic arm of the WellMed Medical Group Inc. headquartered in San Antonio, Texas.
Caregiver SOS by WellMed resource centers offers complimentary programs designed to support family caregivers in their caregiving role, including one-on-one assistance, education, wellness activities and more. Caregiver SOS centers commonly serve caregivers with loved ones impacted by Alzheimer's disease and other chronic conditions such as stroke, cancer, diabetes, chronic lung disease and heart disease.
The WellMed Charitable Foundation developed Caregiver SOS with to help address the growing needs of family caregivers, who are the backbone of long-term care in the United States.
Specially trained caregiver advocates staff each center to provide education, emotional support and training. In Hidalgo County, the center is funded in partnership with the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council's Area Agency on Aging (AAA) and the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Click here to find a resource center.
The Alicia Trevino Lopez Senior One-Stop is a joint venture of the City of San Antonio and the WellMed Charitable Foundation. Located at 8353 Culebra Road on the Northwest Side of San Atonio, the Center is open Monday - Friday from 7 am - 4 pm. The center features a daily lunch program, workout equipment and exercise stations, games & activities, caregiver services, Internet Café with one-on-one computer instruction, assistance with utilities & medications, and WellMed health screenings and health education.
In April 2009, the WellMed Charitable Foundation was awarded a $600,000 grant from the Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Foundation, one of the largest private foundations in the United States. This grant under their Family and Information Caregivers Program will provide caregiver education and social interaction using telephone technology.
It is a partnership with the Alamo Service Connection, the three local Leeza's Places by WellMed, the AACOG Bexar Area Agency on Aging, Jewish Family Service and the City of San Antonio. For more information on the Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Foundation, please see www.hjweinbergfoundation.org.
The San Antonio Metropolitan Health District received $250,000 to offer free flu vaccines across the Bexar county population in 2007 and an additional $100,000 in 2008. This allowed an additional 42,000 flu shots to be provided in a two-year period than could have been provided by Metro Health alone that otherwise would not have been available.
The foundation contributed $25,000 in 2007 and in 2008 to the coal chapter of this national organization dedicated to enriching the lives of mature adults.
WellMed employees are also dedicated to giving back to the communities where they work and live. The GIVE Program allows WellMed Medical Group Inc. employees to contribute directly to Foundation support charities through payroll deductions. In 2008, the GIVE program raised over $125,000 and will top $200,000 in 2009.