Saint Joseph Health’s Creating Safer Neighborhoods Initiative Receives $473,544 Grant to Support Lexington Youth and Families

LEXINGTON, Ky. (August 18, 2025) – Saint Joseph Health has received a $473,544 grant from CommonSpirit Health’s Mission and Ministry Fund to support its Creating Safer Neighborhoods initiative for the next three-year grant cycle, from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028. The initiative is designed to reduce youth violence and build stronger, healthier communities across Lexington.

The Creating Safer Neighborhoods initiative seeks to establish positive peer and adult connections, address mental health, link support services to youth, invest in youth development, and educate families and neighborhoods to foster a culture of safety. By focusing on both primary and secondary prevention, the program aims to provide alternatives that improve the physical, social and economic well-being of youth impacted by violence. The ultimate goal is to achieve a 10% reduction in violence committed by and against youth ages 5–18 in Lexington by June 2028.

“Our commitment to the health and well-being of the Lexington community extends far beyond the walls of our hospitals and clinics,” said Matt Grimshaw, president, Saint Joseph Health. “We are proud to work with multiple community partners through Creating Safer Neighborhoods to improve the lives of young people throughout Lexington and Fayette County.”

Creating Safer Neighborhoods focuses on developing safe spaces – mental, emotional, social and economic environments that foster healthy attitudes and behaviors – and safe places, such as public parks, community centers and homes, where youth live, learn and play. These goals are achieved through high-quality in-school, after-school and out-of-school programs, youth leadership and workforce development initiatives, academic partnerships, family support programming, and community-wide events.

The initiative benefits from strong local collaborations, including partnerships with the Lexington Police Activities League (PAL), Kentucky Horse Park, Kentucky Horse Park Foundation, New Vista, YMCA of Central Kentucky, Lexington Public Library, Partners for Youth, Fayette County Public Schools, Winburn and Cardinal Valley Community Partners Coalition, Cardinal Valley Park Activities Board, Community Inspired Solutions, Kentucky State University, the More in Common Alliance and Morehouse School of Medicine.

The Creating Safer Neighborhoods initiative, which began in 2013, addresses the root causes of youth violence by focusing on risk factors, strengthening community support systems, and improving conditions that influence health and safety in Lexington.

About Saint Joseph Health

Saint Joseph Health, part of CommonSpirit Health, is one of the largest and most comprehensive health systems in the Commonwealth of Kentucky with 100 locations in 20 counties, including hospitals, physician groups, clinics, primary care centers, specialty institutes, home health agencies and an ambulatory Care Center. The hospitals in Saint Joseph Health are Flaget Memorial Hospital, Saint Joseph Berea, Saint Joseph East, Saint Joseph Hospital, Saint Joseph Jessamine, Saint Joseph London, Saint Joseph Mount Sterling, and Women’s Hospital at Saint Joseph East. In total, the health system serves patients in 35 counties statewide. Saint Joseph Health is dedicated to providing a wide array of services to build a healthier future for all. Saint Joseph Health embodies a strong mission and faith-based heritage and works through local partnerships to expand access to care in the communities it serves.

About CommonSpirit Health

CommonSpirit Health is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health care systems with more than 1,000 care sites and 140 hospitals in 21 states. CommonSpirit Health provides care at locations across the country through brands you know and trust.

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