Get Help
If you or a loved one needs help now, our caring staff are available. Reach out today.
Donate
Join us in making lives better.
Sign Up for Our Mailing List
Make a Referral
Complete our referral form for a person you support or family member in need of services
For more than a decade, The MetroWest Health Foundation has provided vital funding and strategic partnership to help Advocates pilot and launch new and innovative solutions to health challenges in the community. A strong example is Advocates’ award-winning and highly successful Jail Diversion model. More recently, the foundation partnered with the Autism Alliance, a program of Advocates, to pilot a project with local pediatric practices to help meet the health needs of children with autism and their families. Beyond funding, the MetroWest Health Foundation builds healthy communities by bringing community stakeholders and providers together to create change. Many Advocates staff have benefitted from participation in the foundation’s Health Leadership Program which advances the professional development of emerging leaders.
Martin Cohen, President and CEO of MetroWest Health Foundation, speaks to our long and successful partnership.
How would you describe MetroWest Health Foundation’s relationship with Advocates?
It would be easy to describe the foundation’s relationship with Advocates as that of funder/grantor, but in reality the relationship is far more than a financial one. We see Advocates as a true partner in our efforts to improve the health of the region. Advocates has brought new ideas and strategies to our thinking, and has worked hand in hand with the foundation to craft solutions for a growing number of community health issues and concerns.
What is a favorite highlight of your partnership with Advocates and why?
Without a doubt, the highlight of our partnership with Advocates is the quality of our interactions with their staff – they are smart, knowledgeable about the needs of consumers, and are willing to think beyond the status quo. They are true leaders in their field.
How has the Foundation been involved in shaping creative solutions for better lives at Advocates and beyond?
The foundation has been in on the ground floor of many projects with Advocates that have gone on to be recognized as innovative models of service delivery both here in Massachusetts and nationally. There is no better example than the Jail Diversion program where the foundation was a core funder and brought other funders along to ensure the project’s success and replication in other communities.
Why do you think partnerships are a key to success when supporting individuals with disabilities or other life challenges?
The needs of individuals are multidimensional; health and human service systems have grown more complex; and funding services has gotten more complicated. No one agency has all of the talent, resources or skills to achieve success on their own. It does take a village.
