Edna G. Kynett Memorial Foundation Grant

The Edna G. Kynett Memorial Foundation Grant supports initiatives that enhance cardiovascular health in the Delaware Valley. The Foundation prioritizes innovative proposals focused on prevention and sustainable health improvements, particularly for children and adults. Grants typically do not exceed $50,000 and cover direct program expenses. Eligible applicants include public entities and 501(c)(3) organizations.

Harold H. Kynett created The Edna G. Kynett Memorial Foundation, Inc.in memory of his wife, Edna, in 1954 to improve cardiovascular health in the Delaware Valley. The Foundation funds community health, professional education, and research programs focused on the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Areas of Funding
The Foundation currently accepts proposals in any of three broad areas: community health, professional education, and research. The Board encourages proposals designed to improve the cardiac health and wellness of populations that have a higher-than-average risk of heart disease and are generally underserved by our current health system. Innovative approaches that may offer a significant return on investment and a focus on prevention are also priorities, as are those that can demonstrate efficacy and sustainability.
Community Health
Community health programs should focus on cardiac health and well-being along the life spectrum, particularly in underserved, high risk communities. The proposal should address evaluation of the program’s outcomes.
For programs focusing on children, the Foundation seeks to foster heart-healthy habits lasting a a lifetime and is particularly interested in programs that incorporate one or more of the following approaches, including, but not limited to, those:
Engaging both parents/primary caregivers and children (i.e., a two-generational approach.)Maximizing impact across the child’s life, by reaching children and families in more than one setting, such as home, early childhood programs, schools, health care providers, etc. Projects might include community health workers serving as “connectors” between the various settings.Targeting physical activity, healthy eating, or environmental changes that increase access to healthier foods and/or to safe, outdoor physical activities.Evaluating the effectiveness of using social media (texting, e-mailing, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) among parents, teachers, health care providers, and community health workers to improve cardiovascular health.
For programs focusing on adults, the Foundation is particularly interested in approaches that likewise promote heart-healthy habits, provide education about cardiovascular health, and augment compliance with medical care, including, but not limited to, those:
Linked to clinical settings to support medical education and complianceProviding community screening for, education about, and interventions addressing cardiovascular risk factorsAddressing individual compliance with prescribed medical careIncreasing physical activity and heart healthy eating
Professional Education
In the area of professional education, Kynett limits its funding to continuing professional education programs that take place in the Philadelphia region and that target physicians and other health care providers who work with underserved populations. The Board will give additional weight to proposals that emphasize outreach to health professionals and teams who practice in high risk, underserved communities; or that develop innovative curricula for health professionals who practice in those communities.
Research
Proposed research should address cardiovascular health and wellness, particularly prevention and risk factors as they relate to women, children, minorities, and the economically disadvantaged, and the delivery of healthcare services in underserved communities. The Foundation looks for proposals that apply rigorous research methods to develop and measure the efficacy of community-based programs and interventions.

Eligibility

Applicants must be either public entities or tax exempt under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Foundation funds programs located in the Delaware Valley: Philadelphia, Bucks, Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Berks, and Lehigh Counties and Camden County, New Jersey and New Castle County, Delaware.Applicants should indicate which focus area their programs target and if the program addresses children’s issues. Grants are for one year, generally do not exceed $50,000, and may fund specific programs or general operating funds.Grants must be used for the direct expenses of the program in question, though under certain circumstances the Foundation will fund general operating expenses. An applicant may not submit more than one proposal for any particular program in any calendar year.

Ineligibility

The Foundation does not fund private foundations, as defined in Section 509 (a) of the Code, or individuals.The Foundation does not make grants to support capital campaigns or endowments or for construction or renovation of facilities. Funds may not be used to pay honoraria to in-house staff, to reduce ongoing deficits from operations, or to substitute for third party reimbursement.Support for capital equipment is rarely provided. Kynett funding may not be utilized for routine medical care unless such services are provided as an essential component of a program to test innovative methods of health service delivery.