Health & Human Services Fund

This fund supports programs and services seeking to improve people's health and/or address basic needs. You can collaborate with Thrivent Charitable and other donors to make the change that matters most to you.

Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan (LSS) believes in the infinite worth of every person and serves with compassion and courage to co-create positive change by strengthening families, healing communities, and creating avenues for belonging. This grant will support the following programs:

• Birth-to-Three Early Intervention: Focused on families with children born with a disability or developmental delay, Birth-to-Three Early Intervention helps them set development goals, build skills, celebrate personalized milestones, and reduce isolation. In 2023, Birth-to-Three served 927 children with special needs, and provided 2,000 parents and caregivers with the tools needed to support their child’s development.
• Family Centered Therapy and Recovery (FCTR): FCTR’s goal is to keep families together. It implements evidence-based best practices designed to support individuals in substance use recovery or with behavioral health concerns by building healthy and supportive relationships within the household. In 2024, more than 280 youth, caregivers, siblings, and other family members have been served by this program.
• School Centered Mental Health (SCMH): SCMH uses a multi-layered approach to provide expanded mental health programs to youth, families, and schools. These services reach beyond traditional school-based mental health programs to include trauma-informed therapy, family coaching, behavior interventions and education/training and assessment. During the 2023-24 school year, SCMH served 194 children and family members, while LSS served nine Milwaukee schools, providing resources that promote wellness and eliminate stigma associated with mental illness to more than 3,000 youth.

Many people within Wisconsin and Michigan are faced with challenges, including struggles with behavioral health concerns, living with disabilities, alcohol consumption rates higher than the national average and a significant increase in the proportion of deaths related to the use of opioids. LSS has been a welcoming and trusted place to turn for assistance. Individuals and families within the two-state reach rely on LSS to help remove barriers and improve their quality of life. If not for organizations like LSS, these individuals would be left unserved and their needs unmet. Last year, LSS served nearly 30,000 people across Wisconsin and Michigan.

“One of the most impressive aspects of LSS’s work is their understanding of how to address health disparities and promote health equity within the community. Their ability to move the needle in this crucial area is a testament to their expertise and their genuine concern for the well-being of underserved populations. Their efforts have the potential to create lasting positive change and serve as a model for others engaged in similar work.” – Lutheran Services of America (Susan Newton, senior director, strategic initiatives)

Support from the Thrivent Charitable Health & Human Services Fund and generous gifts from our donors help make this possible.  For collaborative funds, Thrivent Charitable conducts an invitation-based grantmaking process. For more information review our nonprofit resources.

To make a gift to this collaborative fund now, visit our make a gift page or request a transfer from your donor-advised fund. Please specify the Health & Human Services Fund. Or consider amplifying your generosity with a deferred gift (Give Later).