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Who is receiving Dogwood Health Trust funding? Asheville nonprofit seeks public input

Shelby Harris
Asheville Citizen Times
Attendees look over maps of the composition of the future Dogwood Health board during a press conference with North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein at the Murphy-Oakley Recreation Center on Jan. 16, 2019.

As Dogwood Health Trust moves into its third year of operation, the organization is asking for community input on where to distribute funds.

Dogwood, which distributes money HCA Healthcare paid to buy the formerly nonprofit Mission Hospital, funds programs to promote the health and well-being of 17 Western North Carolina counties.

Nashville-based HCA Healthcare finalized its deal to buy the six-hospital, 12,000-employee Mission Health system for $1.5 billion in early 2019 after about a year of negotiations.

Dogwood is hosting virtual meetings for community members, nonprofits and other stakeholders in Western North Carolina to voice their needs.

“I really want to make sure that we do not come in to do to communities; we come in to support and work with communities,” Dogwood interim CEO Dr. Susan Mims said.

More on Dogwood funding:

The first two meetings Sept. 9 and Sept. 14 were attended by more than 300 people, Mims said. The final community meeting will be held Sept. 20. Registration for the meetings, which are open to the public, can be found on Dogwood’s website

The goal of the virtual events is to listen to communities. Dogwood will then take the public input from the meetings into account when assigning further funding, Mims said.

“The community voice is so essential to getting this right,” she said. “It has been so energizing to hear what people kind of feel are the needs and how we can partner to make the impact that we want to see in our communities.”

Dr. Susan Mims serves as the interim CEO for Dogwood Health Trust.

Related: HCA/Mission hit with anti-trust lawsuit, accused of exorbitant prices, declining quality

Established in 2019, Dogwood Health Trust has distributed more than $78 million in funding as of Sept. 19, Mims said. As of Sept. 17, more than $65 million in grant funding has been approved in 2021 alone, she said.

WNC programs that promote Dogwood’s primary areas of focus — housing, education, economic opportunity and health and wellness — apply for funding, and if approved, usually receive the money within 30 days, Mims said.

Dogwood recently gave $500,000 to the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina for disaster relief after Tropical Depression Fred, and $308,000 to immigrant advocacy group Hola Carolina to support health equity in WNC immigrant communities. 

Related:Tropical Depression Fred's sweep over WNC declared federal disaster; FEMA aid coming

By the end of 2021, Dogwood plans to invest roughly $30 million in housing, $9 million in education, $10 million in economic opportunity initiatives and $11 million in health and wellness, according to a mid-year report.

Shelby Harris is a reporter covering breaking news, education and other topics. She can be reached at sharris@citizentimes.com or on Twitter @_shelbyharris