Building a Healthy Mississippi

Healthy Hometown Awards Program



Purpose

The Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation established the Healthy Hometown Awards Program to encourage and reward exemplary community health and wellness. The Foundation exists to improve the health of Mississippians, and this award will assist our municipal leaders in their efforts to make their communities - and ultimately our state - a healthier place to live.


Awards

The Foundation may award a "Healthy Hometown" grant to one hometown, or award "Healthy Hometown" grants to multiple hometowns, each at $100,000, regardless of municipality population.


Eligibility

Municipalities that have received a $50,000 or $100,000 award as part of the Healthy Hometown Awards Program are ineligible to submit an award application.


Application and Selection

Many hometowns will not meet all the criteria or have all the policies in place that the application suggests. However, the winning municipalities will be those who have made the most strides in creating a healthy community culture and demonstrated the highest level of commitment to making the city a healthy place to live, work and play. Winners will be announced at the Mississippi Municipal League Annual Conference, planned for June 2024 in Biloxi, Mississippi.


Award Restrictions

The grant award may be used only to improve a municipality's health and wellness culture. The recipient municipalities and the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation will complete a standard grant award contract. The plan of expenditure must be approved by the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation.


Recognition

To recognize the winning municipalities, the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation will provide the following:

  1. Congratulatory newspaper ad

  2. Award certificate

  3. Promotion of the winning towns on the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation website