Happy New Year to all our valued partners and friends!
We at the Rauch Family Foundation are filled with gratitude to be working in partnership with over 30 organizations who are improving health outcomes in vulnerable populations. We truly appreciate the compassionate and dedicated individuals who make up our grantees. The work they do is humbling.
Early in 2024, our board adopted a health-focused mission statement, narrowing our philanthropic focus and strengthening our ability to approach grantmaking strategically.
Health Equity and Access in the Inland Empire | We continue to dedicate a substantial portion of our giving to our home region, the Inland Empire (San Bernardino and Riverside Counties) of California. Health outcomes here lag behind coastal areas and receive less per capita philanthropic support overall. This year we awarded $12.5 million and distributed $7.2 million to partners bringing accessible health care to underserved populations in the Inland Empire.
Accessible clinics: We believe that increasing access to affordable primary and mental health care will improve health outcomes for underserved communities. In 2024 we proudly provided operational support to clinics run by the University of California Riverside, the Lestonnac Free Clinic, Psychological Services of Riverside, and Dignity Health St. Bernardine. Looking ahead, we have expanded our partnership with St. Bernardine in an initiative to convert this clinic into a Federally Qualified Health Center sustained by federal funding.
Blood donation center: The American Red Cross (ARC) has opened a new, permanent blood donation center in Riverside, supported by capital funding from the Rauch Family Foundation. This important institution will ensure that diverse blood products are available in the Inland Empire. Importantly, this center was strategically located in Riverside as part of the ARC’s efforts to expand and diversify the blood supply.
GME residency programs: The Inland Empire has a shortage of primary care providers. Locating GME residency programs in underserved areas is a proven way of increasing the number of physicians serving the area. We are thrilled to report that our partner Providence St. Mary has received over 2,000 applications for their 2025 inaugural cohort of 10 Internal Medicine residents. Encouraged by this success, we have signed two new agreements hoping to establish a family medicine residency program and a primary care fellowship program in the physician shortage areas of the Coachella Valley and neighboring Imperial County.
Scholarship support for medical students: We continue to provide scholarship support for students at the California School of Science and Medicine. The students are committed to working in primary care or shortage specialties in the Inland Empire post-residency.
Social Determinants of Health: In 2024, we supported 17 local service providers addressing social determinants of health in the Inland Empire. We approved multi-year operating grants for our long-standing partners. Our largest award was a $1.5 million grant distributed over three years to Feeding America Riverside | San Bernardino supporting their Senior Mobile Pantry Program. Other important community investments address child welfare, safe housing for vulnerable populations, food security, and educational access.
The American Red Cross Inland Empire (IE) Blood Donation Center is dedicated to the IE Gift of Life Heroes.
Disaster Relief and Preparedness | In 2024, we awarded $2.5 million and distributed $1.2 million to disaster relief and preparedness initiatives, including multi-year grants to underserved regions and populations.
Preparedness: Being prepared for emergencies reduces their destructive impact. We approved a multi-year award to The Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) to address preparedness in the Caribbean, which has one of the highest rates of natural disasters on earth. HOT will develop a detailed mapping system designed for the scale and geography of the Caribbean with training of local leaders on data collection and use of the system in preparation for and use during emergency responses.
Equity: Many disasters are often unseen and underfunded. We provided multi-year grants which were either unrestricted or restricted to disasters which don’t make the headlines. Our partners included the US Emergency Response Fund by the American Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, and the Hope in Crisis Fund by Global Giving.
Relief: We were moved to donate funds restricted to some of the worst disasters in 2024, including Hurricanes Beryl, Helene and Milton and refugees fleeing from the war in Sudan. We turned to trusted partners, World Food Program USA and Global Giving, who have strong local partnerships in place to provide relief and long-term recovery.
Global Health | A large portion of our funds support global health initiatives, where large gains in health outcomes can be achieved with high cost effectiveness. In 2024, we awarded $4.2 million and distributed $5.8 million to programs addressing infectious disease and nutrition.
Infectious Disease: Our efforts with infectious diseases continue to center on malaria, which is responsible for approximately 600,000 deaths each year, and trachoma, which is the leading cause of blindness in the world. This year we supported The Malaria Consortium, one of Givewell’s top charities, and The Carter Center which has impressed us with its continued work in Sudan and South Sudan despite the regional violence.
Nutrition: We continued support of two nutrition programs in 2024. In the first year of a four-year grant Helen Keller International, another of Givewell’s top charities, successfully set up a country office in Madagascar. They are on track to begin childhood Vitamin A supplementation, which will prevent both blindness and death. 2024 was the third year we supported the UN World Food Program Liberia’s school feeding program. Overall, the program supports 70,000 schoolchildren with a hot meal and 32 smallholder farms, which supply the food. In 2025, the Liberian government will work with WFP to increase the number of children receiving food to 200,000.
Research: We believe that one of the most effective roles of private philanthropy is building the evidence base for effective interventions. We have contributed funds toward a randomized controlled trial run by the Clinton Health Access Initiative and recommended by GiveWell to determine the efficacy and cost effectiveness of distributing oral rehydration solution and zinc tablets to families with children under five years old for use in preventing serious complications associated with diarrhea.
Arts and Discretionary Awards | Finally, we supported an additional 15 organizations which were close to the hearts of our founders and our directors with a total $0.6 million awarded and distributed.
Challenges and Lessons Learned | While 2024 brought challenges, including the complexities of operating in regions affected by political conflict and instability, our partners’ capacity to evaluate and implement programs under difficult circumstances has inspired us to remain steadfast in our support. We have seen one project, for example, use our grant to branch into a new type of service, only to be slowed down by regulatory hurdles. In response to this, we have chosen to grow with our grantee and fully support their reassessment and pivot.
2025 has brought immediate challenges here in Southern California with extremely destructive wildfires claiming over 14,000 structures and at least 27 lives. Our hearts are with our affected neighbors and with the American Red Cross which is providing emergency support. We stand with Los Angeles as they rebuild and we remain hopeful for wide scale adoption of resiliency measures as we learn to live with an increased frequency of wildfires.
Warmly,
Heather Watkins, Vice-President
To learn more, visit www.therauchfamilyfoundation.org