About
Our Purpose
Create Healthy was founded in 2023, continuing a long tradition of community-driven care in the Texas Hill Country. Built on a legacy of neighbors helping neighbors, our work centers on five strategic funding priorities: food security, mental health, early childhood development, health education, and healthy living. Guided by collaboration, equity, and inclusion, Create Healthy partners with local organizations and leaders to strengthen access, support wellbeing, and build lasting health across every Hill Country community for generations to come.
Our Mission
Our Vision
On a mission for health and wellness in our community:
Investing in wellness.
Empowering communities.
A Hill Country where all contribute and thrive.
Our Definition of Health
Thriving physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially where we live, learn, work, connect, and play.
At Create Healthy, we build partnerships to support mental health, nutrition, education, physical activity, and healthy living opportunities across the Hill Country.
Our Values
Collaborative
An unwavering commitment to transparency, integrity, and accountability in all our interactions.
Trustworthiness is paramount to our commitment to act as a responsible steward of our community’s resources. Open communication with our community is part of how we create an open and transparent process for decision-making as we work with community leaders and members to identify how to best serve the Hill Country.
Trustworthy
Being open to new information and perspectives.
Proactively gathering feedback and insight from our community is essential to our collaborative approach to identifying opportunities to invest in the health and wellness of the Hill Country. Listening to our community and respecting everyone’s perspective help us have the biggest impact when establishing focus areas for community investment.
Courageous
Bravely explore and embrace challenges and opportunities.
Embracing new ideas and innovative solutions will open more opportunities to advance our mission for the Hill Country. Taking informed risks can allow us to make generational differences for our communities that have lasting effects on the health and wellness of everyone in the Hill Country.
Our History
As the largest independent philanthropy serving our region, Create Healthy is the steward of the proceeds from the sale of Hill Country Memorial Hospital to new ownership in April 2023 and the assets held in trust of the former hospital’s foundation. It is tasked with investing in the long-term health and wellbeing of Gillespie, Blanco, Llano, and Mason Counties and the town of Comfort.
While Create Healthy’s roots reach back decades, inspired by the generous and caring individuals and organizations who supported their local hospital so everyone could receive healthcare close to home, its vision looks forward: to a Hill Country where all can contribute and thrive.
Create Healthy combines the generations-long spirit of generosity and fellowship with data-driven and community-directed insights to fund projects, partners, and organizations working to improve health and well-being in the Hill Country for everyone.
So all who call it home can contribute and thrive.
“Our ancestors taught us many lessons. Some are around independence and being responsible for our own health and well-being. Others are about taking care of our neighbors when they need a helping hand. Those lessons inform Create Healthy’s work to support everyone in our community to flourish and build a healthy home, family, workplace, school, and neighborhood.”
– Jayne Pope, RN
CEO & President
Create Healthy
We strive to make a meaningful impact with the resources entrusted to us. There is always more work ahead, but we are inspired by the partnerships and communities that guide us. Together, we are advancing a shared commitment to a healthier, stronger Hill Country where everyone has the opportunity to live well and thrive.
Hear from Our Partners
“Regional partners like Create Healthy are an important lifeline for our program. Create Healthy’s support puts medical students in Llano, Mason, and Fredericksburg clinics and practices and brings healthcare fairs to life for young people. The impact happens in the Hill Country. The funds stay local and help build pathways for tomorrow’s healthcare providers.”
“We’re just incredibly grateful to Create Healthy for this funding. It’s made it possible to provide supportive counseling and education for our hospitality workers who are the very reason our region is such a desirable place to live and visit.”
“You can’t identify problems and come up with solutions if you don’t have the conversations. And, they’re willing to have the conversations. They’re willing to ask the questions. They’re willing to write the check. The appreciation of being included in the seat at the table is huge. I think it’s huge for our community to see what Create Healthy has done for the school, because they’ve donated so much to the playground equipment, and they’ve donated like $50,000 in the last two years to scholarship opportunities for students that are graduating from Harper and going on. That’s a lot of money for our small school. That really made a difference for some kids going to college.”
“We see people walk in with fear and leave with hope. That transformation doesn’t happen without trusted partners like Create Healthy who believe in the long road to healing.”
“Create Healthy have been extremely, extremely generous to Llano ISD. They have provided scholarships to students for the last two years, and they have provided a sizable donation for playground stuff at Llano ISD as well. It’s very gracious that they have gone well above any expectations.”
“Create Healthy is doing a great job at being proactive and holding sharing sessions, so that we can pinpoint the areas that we need to focus on. And funding wise, they’ve been great supporters of the nonprofits and new programs and stuff that we’re all working towards.”
“Create Healthy is doing a great job at being proactive and holding sharing sessions, so that we can pinpoint the areas that we need to focus on. And funding wise, they’ve been great supporters of the nonprofits and new programs and stuff that we’re all working towards.”
“They are helping a lot of nonprofits. They are assisting more than just in Gillespie County – they are assisting quite a few counties in the Hill Country.”
“Although Create Healthy helped us fund childcare, we are also funding mental health, healthy lifestyles, and the future of our community. The ripple effect of this funding is just phenomenal because when parents know their kids are in a safe, warm, welcoming environment, they’re able to work and add to the economic base of Llano.”
