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Press Releases

Tuesday, October 04, 2022

Highmark Blue Shield awards $10,000 grant to Shalom House for Transformation Center Program

Harrisburg, Pa. (October 4, 2022) — Elected officials and representatives of Shalom House joined Highmark at a press conference today to announce a $10,000 Highmark Bright Blue Futures grant to Shalom House. The grant supports the nonprofit’s Transformation Center, which is a new program aimed to empower individuals and families currently in local shelters and those throughout the community who are at imminent risk of homelessness.

Shalom House is a Harrisburg-based organization that provides a temporary shelter for women and children as it offers a bed, food resource assistance, clothing, health and hygiene supplies, as well as case management services designed to help women move toward self-sufficiency.

“Highmark’s community involvement throughout our footprint is strong, and we value our long-standing partnership with Shalom House,” said Kenya T. Boswell, senior vice president of Community Affairs for Highmark Health. “Grants like this one today demonstrate our strategy of Highmark Bright Blue Futures in action as we support community health through our focus on economic stability for individuals and families.” 

Through the Shalom Transformation Center, services including Job Readiness Training, Utility Assistance, Prepared Renters Education Program (PREP), Case Management Services, and onsite Counseling are offered. With the expansion of this program, Shalom House anticipates providing housing and/or preventative services to 150 women and children within its first year.

“Highmark’s continued support of Shalom House and specifically the expansion of the Transformation Center is truly appreciated,” said Kyla Harvey, executive director of Shalom House. “The potential impact this program has to empower women and transform lives is life-changing and sets families up for successful futures.”

Highmark Bright Blue Futures is designed to ensure healthier, brighter, stronger futures for all, and the program focuses on improving equitable access to care, quality of life, and economic resilience in the communities the enterprise serves. Specifically, this program aims to improve outcomes in two critical areas: Community Health and Community and Economic Resilience through corporate giving and employee volunteerism.

For more information about Highmark Bright Blue Futures, visit www.highmark.com/brightbluefutures

About Highmark Blue Shield
Highmark Inc., doing business as Highmark Blue Shield, serves approximately 1.1 million members through the company’s health care benefits business and hundreds of thousands of additional individuals through the BlueCard® program. Highmark Blue Shield has significant commercial market share and strong Medicare Advantage membership [through certain of its affiliated Blue companies] as well. Through its affiliated Blue companies, all of Highmark's Medicare Advantage plans in Pennsylvania achieved the highest possible quality rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) - 5 out of a possible 5 Stars. Highmark Blue Shield employs approximately 3,500 people in central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley, serving as a key economic driver in the region. Highmark Blue Shield’s total economic impact throughout central Pennsylvania is more than $1.2 billion. Highmark Blue Shield is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information, visit www.highmark.com

For more information, contact:

Leilyn Perri
Highmark Health
717-302-4243
leilyn.perri@highmarkhealth.org