The
United Methodist Health Ministry Fund (UMHMF) recently received a grant for $999,058 from the
Lilly Endowment to support the expansion of the Healthy Congregations Program through increased use of the Good Neighbor Experiment (GNE) program.
Funding from the Lilly Endowment will be used to expand the existing program, enhance and research the impact on communities, and develop a network of facilitators. Expansion will include serving 60 new Methodist and non-Methodist congregations over the next five years. Enhancement and research will include new education, technical assistance, and assessments with the Wichita State University School of Social Work. The university will conduct formal academic research on the impact of neighbor-to-neighbor relationships on congregations and communities of various sizes and geographic settings. A network of facilitators will be trained to support churches through day-long retreats and ongoing technical assistance to help them plan and implement community-based projects that use the collective assets to address community social needs.