St. Luke's Lutheran Health Ministries, Inc.


About Us 

St. Luke’s Lutheran Health Ministries, Inc. was created in 1994 by the members of the Assembly of the Southwestern Texas Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).  It was established as a nonprofit to serve as the mission successor to St. Luke’s Lutheran Hospital of San Antonio after the hospital became affiliated with the Baptist Memorial Hospital System.  St. Luke’s is governed by a Board of Directors, a majority of whom are members of the ELCA, with the remainder representing a diversity of community-minded volunteers.  The directors establish policy, manage the corporation’s resources and make grant decisions.


After 30 years of grantmaking, we have become concerned about communities that are marked by poverty, inequity, and limited healthcare access and resources.  To this end, we give priority consideration to programs that promote health equity and are actively providing services to people in areas that have been deemed most in need, at-risk, and least served.  Resources such as The Health Collaborative's 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment Report and the demographic maps found in Metro Health’s “City at a Glance” section (Socioeconomic Characteristics, Health Status, and Social Determinants of Health) may be helpful in this context.
Philanthropic Focus

We provide support to non-profit health care-related ministries that benefit the San Antonio regional community, with primary consideration given in this order of priority:

    1. Direct and indirect health care services (medical, dental and mental health care and protective health services)
    2. Health education, preventive services and wellness initiatives
    3. Health care equipment and supplies that are critical to the delivery of direct care
Geographic Boundaries
Applicants from Texas communities previously served by St. Luke's Lutheran Hospital, San Antonio, Texas, may be eligible, with consideration given to organizations in the following geographic locations, in this order of priority:
1.  Bexar County
2.  Gillespie and Kerr counties and counties contiguous to Bexar (Atascosa, Bandera, Comal, Guadalupe, Kendall, Medina and Wilson)
3.  Other Texas counties previously served by St. Luke's Lutheran Hospital

Program Criteria
Proposals that consider the following criteria have greater potential for receiving grants:

  1. Utilize collaboration with other organizations and community resources in the achievement of their goals.
  2. Address root causes of a concern, rather than treating symptoms.
  3. Leverage the financial and community resources of multiple interests in addressing the issue.
  4. Serve as a catalyst to stimulate joint cooperative efforts among different sectors of the community.
  5. Result in a growing, long-lasting, impact on the situation beyond the value of the grant itself. 
  6. Reflect and encourage sound financial planning and solid management practices in the administration of the project.

Excluded from Funding

1.  Galas, testimonial dinners, fund raising events, or advertising.
2.  Support of individuals or private foundations.
3.  Past operating deficits or debt retirement.
4.  Fund raising feasibility studies.
5.  Endowment.
6.  Services outside our geographic scope.
Grant Application Requirements

Limited to 501(c)(3) public charities that are tax-exempt under federal law.

Organizations that have received funding during each of the past three consecutive years must take a one-year hiatus before reapplying.

Only one application per organization in any calendar year.

Our grant awards for each cycle in 2026 are structured as follows: 

    1. Large Grants: We will award one grant in the range of $20,000 to $25,000.
    2. Medium-Sized Grants: We will award between 10 and 15 grants in the range of $10,000.
    3. Small Grants: We will award approximately 10 grants in the range of $5,000.

All applications must be submitted through our online portal.  In 2026, the deadline for the spring cycle is Monday, February 16 at 5 pm CST, and the deadline for the fall cycle is Friday, August 14 at 5 pm CDT. We cannot accept late applications.  If you do not already have the portal link, please contact the Executive Director.
Partnering with our Community

In the Fall 2025 grant cycle, we were pleased to support the following organizations with total funding of $207,000.

AugustHeart; Autism Community Network; Camp Agape; CASA of Central Texas; Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of San Antonio; Celebrate Dyslexia; Center for Health Empowerment in South Texas; Child Advocates San Antonio; Children's Bereavement Center of South Texas; Clarity Child Guidance Center; Friends of CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Foundation; Guardian House; Hill Country Family Services; Hill Country Mission for Health; Jewish Family Service of San Antonio, Texas Inc.; Meals on Wheels San Antonio; Mission Road Developmental Center; NAMI Greater San Antonio; Open T.R.A.I.L. Ranch; Presbyterian Children's Homes and Services; Raphael Community Free Clinic; REBOOT Recovery; River City Advocacy; Ronald McDonald House Charities; San Antonio Birth Doulas; Texas Ramp Project; Thrive Youth Center Inc; UT Health San Antonio.
Your Gifts to SLLHM:  Making an Impact

You can be a catalyst for transformational community health services by supporting St. Luke's Lutheran Health Ministries (SLLHM) with your tax-deductible gifts. 
Send a contribution to:  
St. Luke's Lutheran Health Ministries
PO Box 6101
San Antonio, TX  78209
Questions:  email Amy Dameron Phipps, Executive Director, aphipps@sllhm.org
Contact Us

Amy Dameron Phipps, Executive Director
St. Luke’s Lutheran Health Ministries
PO Box 6101
San Antonio, Texas 78209
Phone (210) 820-3038
aphipps@sllhm.org