Key Peninsula Partnership for a Healthy Community: 2025 Network Funding Spotlight

Filed Under: Vibrant Community - Posted @ 8:25pm

Guiding Focus of Network 

Strengthening the Key Peninsula – Connecting the Community Our vision is a community that works together to grow stronger and healthier. 

How Network Was Formed 

In 2015 community leaders, supported by the then Milgard Foundation and Catholic Health Initiative, got together to explore a way to “move the needle” toward a stronger Key Peninsula community. They determined that the best solution was to create an organization focused on partnership, using an asset-based community development model. 

Shared Successes that Have Emerged from this Network 

• Establishment of two community clinics to replace the only (retiring) physician serving 20,000 residents 

• Development of the only licensed day care (Forrest Friends) in the community 

• Creation of the first community developed and led public transportation program (with The Mustard Seed Project [TMSP], KP Community Services [KPCS], Food Backpacks 4 Kids [FB4K], the Red Barn, and WSDOT) 

• Regular meeting of KP Kids and Access to Health Care groups – Home delivery food/resource navigation/digital equity study cooperative (TMSP, KPCS, FB4K, CommonSpirit Foundation) 

• Multiple capital improvements for nonprofit facilities (Bischoff Foodbank, KPCS, KP Lutheran Church, TMSP) 

• Staff resource navigator connects community members to over 100 support programs 

1-2 Big Goals Your Network is Hoping to Achieve in 2026 

• Launch of community hub-share vehicle project (TMSP, KPCS, Red Barn, FB4K)  

• Completion of digital equity study and design of a solution project  

• Reestablishment of (quarterly)dental van program (with MultiCare, Arcora Foundation, KP Lutheran Church) 

Advice For Others Looking to Leverage Networks to Help Build a Thriving Community

Challenges to Anticipate 

• Collaboration is time intensive, and time is not something underfunded, over-worked nonprofits have a lot of.  

• Many funders choose to fund the production side of nonprofits, not networking/collaboration.  

• Organizations are not always ready to partner. 

Tips for Navigating Challenges 

• Strive to provide more value to your partners than you are asking them to contribute to the partnership.  

• Include collaboration-building into your program costs.  

• Strive for a persistent, consistent, relationship-building presence (“Be in the room”) in order to be in position to build collaboration when a partner IS ready. 

How to Build Shared Goals 

• Start with a relationship 

• Learn about other organizations’ challenges 

• Learn community visions.