Our Story
Our Story
Our Story
Our Story
Vision, Mission & Values
The Horizon Foundation envisions a Howard County free from systemic inequities, where all people can live abundant and healthy lives.
We work side-by-side with community to build power, advocate for policy change and dismantle structural racism to achieve better health for everyone in Howard County and greater Maryland.
Underneath all this work are our values – the principles that give us purpose and direction. We believe these values guide the way we aspire to act and show up in our community, and provide a way for our community to hold us accountable. To this end, we promise to be:
IMPACTFUL
We act with intentionality and draw upon lived experience, research and data to drive positive health outcomes in our community.
TRUSTWORTHY
We work to earn trust by building relationships through sincerity and vulnerability.
ANTI-RACIST
We challenge and transform policies, behaviors and beliefs that perpetuate systemic racism and other intersecting forms of oppression.
CATALYTIC
We build and share power to foster coalitions that advance health equity.
COURAGEOUS
We acknowledge and use our privilege to influence others, dispel harmful narratives and demand change.
Our History
The Horizon Foundation is the largest independent health philanthropy in Maryland and Howard County’s community health foundation. We were created in 1998 using the proceeds from the sale of Howard County General Hospital to Johns Hopkins Medicine. The Foundation’s endowment is approximately $90 million.
Though our strategic priority areas and tactics have evolved over the years, our focus has always been to improve public health in our community, especially for those who face the most significant barriers to achieving good health.
Over the last 26 years, we have invested $78 million in public health, funding over 400 community groups and working with a number of partners on issues such as mental health, chronic disease prevention, health care access, healthy aging and more.
Read more about our impact in recent years:
Howard Community Health Foundation
The Howard Community Health Foundation (HCHF) is the primary funding source of the Horizon Foundation and is responsible for its research and strategic planning process. HCHF’s Planning and Evaluation Committee assists the board in developing a draft strategic plan, including strategic goals, initiatives, projects and activities consistent with the organization’s mission. The Committee is also responsible for recommending evaluation strategies, including the use of specific metrics to determine impact.
