[Grand Marais, MN, September 5, 2025] – The North Shore Health Care Foundation, a longstanding Cook County, MN 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, has changed its name to Vital North Foundation. The goal of the name change is to better reflect the Foundation’s values and mission, and to distinguish the Foundation as separate from other established health care entities in Cook County.
“The mission of Vital North Foundation is to proactively identify opportunities and champion solutions to improve equitable health outcomes and community wellbeing in Cook County, Minnesota. We accomplish this by investigating and advancing knowledge on local issues, building coalitions, funding innovators, and incubating needed programs,” shared Anna Cariad-Barrett, Interim Executive Director. Since 1993, Vital North Foundation has responded to critical health and wellbeing issues in the community by awarding more than $1.6 million in grants to support third-party programs for underserved segments of our rural population, and creating and incubating programs to fill gaps in our community. Examples of the successful and award-winning programs created and incubated by the Foundation include The Oral Health Taskforce, Care Partners of Cook County, The Emergency Workforce Solutions initiative, and the Restorative Justice & Truancy Services program. Its newest initiative, The Rural Lab, is a research and solution-development program exploring and developing solutions for the toughest community health and wellbeing issues facing the region. More information can be found at www.vitalnorth.org.
