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 2005 was a year in which we had the unique opportunity to pause and reflect on the many meaningful accomplishments of The Colorado Trust over its 20-year history. In the rush of today’s world, this type of reflection is becoming all too rare. That’s why we have a stated commitment to learn from our efforts. Not just every decade or two, but with each long-term Trust grantmaking initiative we review, discuss and ponder lessons learned and evaluation findings. This reflection, combined with in-depth research on current and emerging needs, is incorporated into new, hopefully ever-more-effective grantmaking initiatives.
This past year saw the launch of four new Trust initiatives. The Equality in Health Initiative is a seven-year commitment that seeks to reduce racial and ethnic inequities in health care. The Colorado 100k Lives Campaign builds off of a national campaign to support the efforts of hospitals to further strengthen their commitment to patient safety and quality care. The Partnerships for Health Initiative is helping to strengthen community health care providers’ ability to better deliver services. And, Advancing Colorado’s Mental Health Care continues The Trust’s tradition of partnering with other funders when possible to increase the reach of an effort. This special project, undertaken in conjunction with three other Colorado foundations, is helping to meet the needs of Coloradans with mental illnesses through better-coordinated services. These new initiatives, which are further highlighted in this report, account for nearly $30 million in support from The Trust over the next 18 months to seven years, and will reach communities in virtually every Colorado county through the work of 96 grantee organizations.
Combined with the 10 ongoing, long-term Trust initiatives, these efforts to advance the health and well-being of the people of Colorado are made possible through the continued careful stewardship of the foundation’s endowment. Thanks to investment returns that have consistently outperformed industry benchmarks, The Trust’s portfolio reached record levels in 2005, along with near-record grantmaking.
The Trust continues to be a strong resource for the people of Colorado. Perhaps the most important reason for the successes we achieve is the hard work and dedication of Trust staff and the many grantees across Colorado in carrying out the work of these initiatives. We applaud their collective efforts in making life better here in Colorado.
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