Valley Baptist Medical Foundation was formed in 1976 with a mission to raise funds to support the infrastructure of the Valley Baptist Health System. For more than 30 years, the Foundation successfully raised millions of dollars through events, capital campaigns, grant writing and planned giving programs that enhanced the infrastructure of our hospitals and educational offerings for employees and the community as a whole. On September 1, 2011, Valley Baptist Health System and Vanguard Health Systems entered into a joint venture, and in 2015, Valley Baptist Legacy Foundation sold the remaining 49% to Tenet Healthcare. As a result of these transactions, our Foundation received proceeds that are the source of funds for our grant making program. We no longer use donations to benefit Valley Baptist hospitals, but instead we identify and address healthcare related needs of our community through our strategic grant making program.
To better communicate our new mission, our name changed to Valley Baptist Legacy Foundation. The Foundation continues in the tradition of excellence set forth by the two Valley Baptist hospitals, both of which opened in the 1920s and have a long and deep tradition of supporting the health needs of residents in the lower Rio Grande Valley. As a faith-based, regional health system, Valley Baptist has always provided high quality healthcare and medical education throughout South Texas, guided by the healing and teaching ministry of Jesus Christ.
The Foundation is continuing this inspiring Legacy in new and meaningful ways through a program of strategic philanthropy designed to positively impact the health of our community. We are working with the many great organizations in our area that already focus on the healthcare needs of our residents, as well as collaborating with new and existing organizations to create sustainable change in the health of our community.
Our focus areas were based on information we received from a Community Health Needs Assessment conducted in 2011, and an internal assessment conducted in 2021. We will continue to align our program according to the changing needs in our community. Our first funding year was 2014 with a $1,000,000. Since then, we have invested over $162 million in areas of health education, research, chronic disease prevention and healthy lifestyles, access to health services, as well as many other health-related causes. To see which organizations have been funded, visit our Funded Partners pages, organized by year. We are proud of the work being done throughout the Rio Grande Valley to create a healthier place to live, work, worship, and play.
Please see the “Funded Partners” pages for information related to organizations which have received grants.