HispanicBusiness

ST. LOUIS, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Mercy Health Plans recently presented $10,000 donations to three local community organizations. The benefiting organizations were: the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) - St. Louis Section, the Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club and La Clinica Latino Community Health Center.

"Mercy Health Plans is extremely pleased to contribute to these organizations," said Tom Kelly, President of Mercy Health Plans. "Our goal is to improve the total health of the individuals in the communities we serve. All three recipients share that mission and each supports their constituencies with care and compassion."

The NCJW - St. Louis will apply the $10,000 donation toward its fourth annual Back To School! Store(TM). This program completely outfits children for the first day of school, generating positive self-esteem and enthusiasm for starting the school year, enabling them to focus on learning. "The children really look forward to this event," said Janne Weissman, Project Co- Chair. "They are assigned their own personal shopper and get to pick out what they want to wear on the first day of school."

The Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club was founded on the former grounds of the storied Sportsman's Park at 2901 N. Grand Avenue. Currently, the club estimates that membership is over 2,100 boys and girls between 6 and 18 years of age, fifty percent of whom are from single-parent homes. The club focuses on five core areas: character and leadership, education and career, health and life skills, arts and sports, and fitness and recreation. "As a result of these programs, our members are more likely to maintain positive relationships with their peers, their families, and thus, the larger community," said Flint Fowler, Executive Director of the club. The Mercy Health Plans contribution will be used to support the club's educational programs.

La Clinica Latino Community Health Center was founded in 1993 by United Methodist minister William Chignoli as a result of the unmet needs of St. Louis' Hispanic population. The clinic strives to erase the language and social barriers that prevent many from seeking out and receiving the care they need. The donation from Mercy Health Plans will be used to help complete a new clinic site. Currently, the clinic is in the basement of the United Methodist Church of the New Community, an inner-city congregation that Chignoli leads as pastor. La Clinica provides the equivalent of more than $1 million in services - medical and other - to 1,200 people a month. The time of volunteer medical staff, translators and donated medical equipment and supplies from various sources contribute to the total.

Mercy Health Plans (MHP) was founded in 1994 by the Sisters of Mercy Health Systems - St. Louis, an organization with a proud, 140-year history of community service. MHP creates a seamless, integrated healthcare delivery system in its target communities. The plan operates as an HMO, a health insurance Company and third-party administrator for various communities served by Sisters of Mercy Health System headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Today, MHP provides consumer-centered health coverage to more than 230,000 people in Missouri, Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. For more information, visit http://www.mercyhealthplans.com/.

For photos and cut lines that correspond with this press release, please go to http://www.thembcgroup.com/mhppr/. Mercy Health Plans

CONTACT: Tom Kelly, President of Mercy Health Plans, +1-314-214-8100; orAngela McKenna of thembcgroup, +1-314-361-6717, for Mercy Health Plans

Web site: http://www.mercyhealthplans.com/