Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation

The September issue of our Thriving Together newsletter is here! This month's highlights: 🌱 Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance's SEEDS program expands access to energy efficiency programs across the Southeast 🤝 LinkUp Lab helps young men find healthy forms of belonging (created by Futures Without Violence and DC-based Equimundo) 💼 Leaders unite to strengthen workforce pathways on Atlanta's Westside (special thanks to Atlanta Technical College, Café Momentum Atlanta and Darnell Cadette) ⛵ Mighty Mary champions women in sports 💙 Winship's mobile prostate cancer screening marks one year on the road Read the full issue: https://conta.cc/4zc2DD3

Arthur M. Blank and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation partnered with Olympic rower and award-winning filmmaker Mary Mazzio, OLY to help bring the film Mighty Mary to life. Narrated by Elizabeth Banks and Hugh Jackman, the film tells the story of the first all-women's sailing team to contend for the America's Cup, one of the world's most elite and historically exclusive sporting competitions. It's a true underdog story about a team that redefined what was possible in a sport long closed to women. Last week, we hosted a screening at the family office, followed by a panel with Mr. Blank, Mary Mazzio, Amy Baltzell, Ed.D., OLY (part of the Mighty Mary crew and a former Olympic-level athlete), and T. A. McCann (a professional sailor and tech entrepreneur featured in Mighty Mary). The film's message aligns with the Blank Family of Businesses’ broader commitment to expand opportunities for women in sports, including the recent additions of a National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) team and a WTGL team, giving more women athletes the chance to showcase their talent on a bigger stage. Watch the trailer: https://lnkd.in/eWzaGWKv 📸: (from L - R): Mary Mazzio, Arthur M. Blank, Amy Baltzell and T.A. McCann

Excited to share this news! The March of Dimes Innovation Fund is partnering with the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation to address maternal and infant mental health. This philanthropic support will enable our Innovation Fund to make investments in promising startups to improve outcomes in these areas. We are looking forward to collaborating with the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation team and others in the field who are working on these important issues. #mentalhealth #maternalmentalhealth #infantmentalhealth

For a first-time mother, bringing home a newborn baby can be both joyful and overwhelming. The days are long, sleep is scarce and support can feel out of reach. Feelings of anxiety, depression and isolation can quietly take hold, affecting both mother and child at a moment that matters most. That mother's story is at the heart of three recent investments we've made to strengthen maternal and infant mental health resources and access. - Changent: their evidence-based programs serve families during the earliest and most critical years of a child's development. - Thrive Center at Georgetown University: testing care models that support parents and children together, recognizing that the well-being of one directly shapes the well-being of the other. - March of Dimes Innovation Fund: helping to invest in new tools and solutions that can identify mental health needs earlier and connect more families to care. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/es7CfSKg

Please join us in welcoming Kristen Ward, our new managing director, Mental Health & Well-Being, to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation! Kristen brings extensive experience across mental and environmental health, women's economic development and corporate philanthropic strategy development. She joins us from Mindful Philanthropy, an organization she co-founded, where she served as vice president, programs and knowledge. At the foundation, Kristen will lead the strategy and execution of our Mental Health & Well-Being giving area, partnering with organizations across the country to help young people thrive at three critical points: infancy, childhood and adolescence. "Kristen brings a unique combination of strategic philanthropy expertise, extensive experience in the field of mental health, and a deep commitment to improving mental health outcomes for young people," said Fay Twersky, president. "She has dedicated her career to helping funders drive meaningful impact, and I look forward to the leadership, insight and innovation she will bring to the foundation." Learn more about Kristen: https://lnkd.in/eTEnPXeY

For the past many months, I've had the opportunity to serve as managing director of two priority areas at the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation: Mental Health and Well-Being and Effective Philanthropy and Learning. These may seem like an apples-and-oranges set of responsibilities. One is focused on preventing youth mental health challenges, while the other works across our giving areas on strategy, learning, and impact. Maybe all of us in philanthropy start to see the world through the lens we fund (ask a funder you know to connect their issue to pretty much anything and I bet they can!) But that bias won't stop me from making the connection I see that mental health IS health, and if we care about funding healthy organizations, mental health and well-being need to be part of how we think about and fund the capacity and the resilience of the people doing the work. Soon I'll be handing over the mental health and well-being portfolio to a great new leader (stay tuned for that announcement!) I'm looking forward to welcoming her and diving fully into all things related to philanthropic strategy, learning and impact. As I do so, I'll carry my commitment to mental health with me.

Incredible to see the impact of this program in just one year! We’re proud to support Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University in bringing critical screenings directly to communities across Georgia and helping more men access early detection. 💙 Learn more about the screening program: https://lnkd.in/eUNTVGbd

Montana's grasslands are among the most threatened ecosystems in North America. Ranchers have long been at the forefront of protecting them. In October 2025, ranching couple Dale and Janet Veseth announced a planned gift of their 38,300-acre ranch to the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance, the largest working ranch land planned gift in Montana history, to ensure that the land isn’t lost to outside interests and remains an active, working landscape that benefits the local community But protecting the land is only half the job. Someone has to work it next. That’s why RSA partnered with Winnett ACES to launch the Montana Ranch Boot Camp, hands-on training for the next generation of ranchers, taught alongside people who’ve spent decades working the land. Read more about how RSA and Winnett ACES are preparing the next generation of Montana ranchers: https://lnkd.in/ehjnmmBW