This month’s “Member Spotlight” features Jack Simpson, President at the Ballad Health Foundation. Here’s a little bit more about Jack and his work in philanthropy:
Describe your philanthropic philosophy and how your philosophy shapes your work.
I was fortunate to attend the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University. That experience helped me to see how integral the philanthropic sector is to building trust, cooperation, and altruism—all things that are the base elements of civil society. I believe that every donor, volunteer, or co-laborer in that effort becomes a more impactful and effective member of a free democratic society.
What “influencers” are you following? What leaders have “influenced” your leadership style or goals?
How have changes over the past few years influenced your leadership and/or grantmaking?
We’ve become more polarized as a society—which deeply concerns me, but it has left me with a strong desire to find a common ground and work from there. We don’t have to agree on everything, we don’t have to agree on a lot, but I suspect we can find something we agree on and build out from there.
How has VFN been relevant to the work you’re doing?
I really appreciate the collaborative spirit among the VFN membership, especially in our region. I think we all recognize the challenges facing the Appalachian Highlands of NE Tennessee and SW Virginia are bigger than any one player can effectively meet. By collaborating, networking, sharing ideas, and partnering on projects we can multiply our efforts toward a more effective end.
Tell us about a project or an area of work you’re most excited about.
We have some very significant needs around behavioral health and substance use disorder in on our area. Ballad Health, and by extension, Ballad Health Foundation are starting lean hard into these needs to develop innovative solutions.
What partnerships and/or collaborative efforts have been meaningful to you and what have those partnerships/collaborative efforts helped you accomplish?
As a foundation that is embedded into and dedicated to supporting our local health system and facilities, everything we accomplish is through the generosity and partnership of 5,000 businesses, individuals, and community leaders each year. In Southwest Virginia, we are particularly proud of work we’ve done with fellow VFN Members, the Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation and The Rapha Foundation, to support PEERhelp recovery specialists and the United Company Foundation to support mobile mammography.
Share a recent story of “success” or positive progress within your organization.
I am particularly proud of the work our foundation did to secure support for to hire PEERhelp specialists, many of whom have themselves been justice-involved, to work with a population of largely justice-involved individuals who are in recovery. Almost every one of these people has a story that involves a child being taken from the home that has been subsequently reunited with the family. Every one of those children is a massive win for region as they will become more likely to not fall into abusive relationships with substances themselves.
