Intermountain Healthcare announces community contributions in St. George, including $25,000 for Cherish Family programs

Intermountain Healthcare has contributed $25,000 to the Cherish Families organization to benefit members of the underserved communities that Cherish Families supports by helping them bridge societal gaps and build new connections.

Cherish Families is committed to helping individuals who have experienced difficulties associated with a polygamous background to move forward. The nonprofit organization provides food, clothing, shelter, and legal help, but the greatest need is mental health services.

“We are so grateful for this gift,” said Shirlee Draper, director of operations for Cherish Families. “These funds will help us fill in gaps for mental health services that we cannot fund any other way.”

The guiding philosophy of Cherish Families is to increase cultural competence by strengthening capacities and ensuring self-determination of members.

“We offer a variety of services that can help people reach stability and independence,” Draper said. “Our mission is to connect individuals and families, primarily those from polygamist cultures, with tools and resources for generational success.”

The charity was founded and is largely staffed by people from polygamist backgrounds. With a deep understanding of the fears and barriers people from this background can experience, the team is compassionate, empathetic and uniquely qualified to serve.

“Living the healthiest life possible requires more than access to high-quality healthcare,” said Paul Krakovitz, MD, regional president of Intermountain. “We’ve found that supporting those in need has a positive impact on community health. We want to be part of helping those who have struggled with adverse circumstances regain strength and the ability to succeed.”

These contributions are part of an Intermountain-led effort aimed to improve community health by addressing the social determinants of health, which are the non-medical factors that play a role in overall health of a community.

These social determinants include reliable transportation, food security, housing, and education among others that can all affect overall health.

In addition to the $25,000 gift to Cherish Families, Intermountain donated $100,000 to help fund the Washington County Mental Health Receiving Center, $25,500 for the Doctors Volunteer Clinic, and $20,000 to Utah Tech University for diversity in healthcare scholarships.
About Cherish Families
Cherish Families connects individuals and families, primarily those from polygamist cultures, with tools and resources for generational success. Our 2020 impact included 17 cultural competence trainings, 1,617 volunteer hours, 25,000 services provided and 861 housing specific services.

About Intermountain Healthcare

Headquartered in Utah with locations in eight states and additional operations across the western U.S., Intermountain Healthcare is a nonprofit system of 33 hospitals, 385 clinics, medical groups with some 3,900 employed physicians and advanced care providers, a health plans division called SelectHealth with more than one million members, and other health services. Helping people live the healthiest lives possible, Intermountain is committed to improving community health and is widely recognized as a leader in transforming healthcare by using evidence-based best practices to consistently deliver high-quality outcomes at sustainable costs. For more information and updates, click here