As part of National Kidney Month in March, the Community Foundation announced that the Rubin Community Health Fund would distribute more than $464,000 to 13 organizations across the Capital Region.
| Capital District LATINOS, WellBeing360: Comprehensive Disease Prevention Program | Senior Citizens Center of Saratoga Springs, Inc., Building a Healthier Senior Community |
| Capital Roots, Increasing Healthy Food Access through Mobile Produce Markets | South End Children’s Café, Inc., VeggieVenture |
| Comfort Food Community, Food as Medicine | The Community Builders, Health-Full Homes |
| Community Caregivers, Inc., Healthy Elders, Healthy Communities and Services for Individuals on Home Dialysis | The Food Pantries for the Capital District, Inc., Healthy Pantry Initiative |
| Connect Center for Youth, Connect Pantry | Trinity Alliance of the Capital Region, Inc., Wellness Advocates Linking Communities |
| Hudson Headwaters Health Network, Food As Medicine | Watervliet Civic Chest, Inc., Food is Fuel |
| Radix Ecological Sustainability Center and AVillage, Inc., Healthy South End Initiative |
Since 2018, the Rubin Community Health Fund has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual grants to support the prevention, management, and treatment of kidney disease in the greater Capital Region. It is the largest fund managed by the Community Foundation.
The fund was named in honor of Hortense and Louis Rubin, who were committed to enhancing the quality of life of the patients who received treatment at their dialysis centers. The fund was established at the Community Foundation in 2016 with the proceeds from the sale of those centers, the final distribution of which was received in 2023.
Including 2024, the Rubin Fund’s total grantmaking will surpass $2.9 million.
“Today the Rubin Community Health Fund continues to innovate and support programs that share a commitment to health equity and access to healthy food, health care, and exercise programs to reduce the incidence and prevalence of chronic kidney disease and related risk factors,” President & CEO John Eberle said. “This is where our investment will offer the greatest reward.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control, approximately 14 percent of adults have chronic kidney disease. Based on the population of the greater Capital Region, it’s estimated that 155,000 residents are living with chronic kidney disease, though 9 in 10 of them may not know it.
Together with the Rubin Community Health Fund’s Advisory Committee, the Community Foundation has worked to conduct a comprehensive review of the region’s needs. It has also engaged health care stakeholders in developing strategies aimed at changing these systems to enhance their delivery of care.
“We can’t turn back the clock, but we can try to prevent others from a lifetime with the disease,” Eberle said. “The Rubin Community Health Fund’s Advisory Committee shares a commitment to prevention, and to seeing the needle move in the years to come.”
The Committee uses national and local data to evaluate the region’s needs. This coupled with community knowledge has helped direct the fund’s available dollars while ensuring the greatest impact each year.
The first round of grants were distributed in 2018 to a handful of organizations that focused on health care services and disease prevention. Since then, the Fund has expanded to support youth education to help children develop healthy habits, health screening and prevention programs for people of color (who are disproportionately affected by chronic kidney disease), nutritional guidance and access to healthy foods, medical transportation, and meal programs/tailored grocery programs for those at risk of chronic kidney disease, diabetes, and related comorbidities.