Newsroom | Community Health

In 1994, the Oklahoma Caring Foundation Inc. began a mission of helping provide access to preventive health services across the state.

Thirty years later, that mission continues through the Oklahoma Caring Foundation’s operation of the Oklahoma Caring Van Program, which gives free immunizations to children who encounter barriers. The program has delivered more than 384,000 vaccines to 236,000 Oklahoma kids.

“The reason the Oklahoma Caring Foundation exists is that we fill gaps by providing access to preventive health services,” says Oklahoma Caring Foundation Executive Director Brooke Townsend. “We are grounded in our core values, which are commitment, health, partnership and service. Our vision is truly to improve the health of Oklahomans, one child at a time.”

In commemoration of 30 years of serving Oklahoma communities, foundation members recently gathered at Educare in Oklahoma City to honor the impact made through the Oklahoma Caring Foundation.

Townsend credits the foundation’s success to the support of other community partners.

“We have operating partners who have Caring Vans out on the road, providing preventive health services, service partners who provide professional nursing services aboard our Caring Vans and hundreds of community partners — schools, childcare facilities, churches, nonprofit organizations and tribal entities — that host Caring Vans at more than 600 sites annually,” Townsend says.

As a 501(c)3 organization, the Oklahoma Caring Foundation is funded by community contributions and administered by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma as an in-kind donation.

To learn about the organization, visit the Oklahoma Caring Foundation site.