Since its inception, this has amounted to more than $40 million distributed to 50 local organizations.
“We don’t just think of health as primary, preventative and acute care,” Alarcón said. “We think about green spaces. We think about access to healthy and nutritious foods. We think about postsecondary education and employment. All of those things go to your overall health.”
How we got here
Born in Austin and raised in Round Rock, Alarcón came to Georgetown in 1999 straight out of graduate school, where he studied health care administration, and went to work at the Georgetown Hospital, at that point an independent nonprofit community hospital.
He was part of the team that decided to sell the hospital to St. David’s HealthCare in 2006. As part of the sale, what became the Georgetown Health Foundation kept an equity interest in all of St. David’s HealthCare, meaning a portion of the foundation’s revenues are tied to profits from all St. David’s hospitals systemwide.
Georgetown Health Foundation also receives revenue from its 300,000 square feet of real estate holdings in and around Georgetown—including its new headquarters building just off the square, where it also rents out space to tenants—and its traditional stock and bond portfolio.
Alarcón said because of the organization’s roots, staff want to keep investment in Georgetown local.
“Because we were Georgetown Hospital, our funds impact the community of Georgetown kind of on a micro level,” Alarcón said.
The details
Georgetown Health Foundation provides grants, both large and small, as well as multiyear investments in local nonprofit organizations, including The Caring Place, The Georgetown Project and ROCK.
In 2022, it purchased the building for The Carver Center for Families, a family resource center that houses a number of partner organizations.
Among them are a WIC clinic, which serves 1,900 women and children a month, and Lone Star Market, a predominantly WIC grocery store, which helps shoppers maximize their benefits from the Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program.
Other organizations at the Carver Center include Bridges to Growth, Georgetown Backpack Buddies, A Gift of Time, Starry, AGE of Central Texas and Catholic Charities.
Additionally, the Georgetown Health Foundation renovated the gym and the YMCA leads programming there. The Hive offers a place for caregivers and children to gather and play, and the building touts an outdoor playground.
“Carver in the last two years has absolutely shifted our mindset on how we can improve the health of the community. So 2009-2021, it had all been essentially grants. Then we see this opportunity to take this building, which is in the shadow of our origin—it's literally a rock throw from Georgetown Hospital—and breathe life into it ... it's just blowing me away,” Alarcón said.
On the horizon
Georgetown Health Foundation’s next major initiative is the Center for Nonprofit Success, which will provide education, training and capacity building for nonprofit organizations’ staff and boards.
Alarcón said the center will have a portal with a learning management system and an AI component that will help nonprofits write policies or job descriptions using industry best practices.
The center will be a partnership with Central Texas Community Foundation, and received a gift from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation.
Alarcón said the center will help Georgetown Health Foundation’s grant funding go farther.
“There’s always a way for us to provide some level of support,” Alarcón said. “So say you didn't get that grant that you applied for, ... here’s some other resources to strengthen you, that may make you eligible in the future as you continue to grow.”
Get involved
While the health foundation doesn’t directly fundraise or ask for money, Alarcón said one way to support the work of the organization is by plugging in at one of Georgetown’s many nonprofits.
“This is one of the most giving communities, both financially as well as with their time and talents, so I would just ask for folks to find their passion because there are dozens of exceptional nonprofits that could use your support,” Alarcón said.
