The St. Pete Economic Development Corp. is pleased to announce the Foundation for a Healthy St. Pete as a new Trustee-level Investor in the EDC. The Foundation works to advance racially equitable health outcomes by improving the determinants that shape them.
We are also pleased to welcome Foundation president & CEO Dr. Kanika Tomalin to the 2025 EDC Board of Governors. Dr. Tomalin is a veteran C-suite executive and public servant who specializes in transforming intent into action through committed leadership that combines experience across various sectors with expertise across various disciplines for the benefit of those she is honored to serve.
About the Foundation
The Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg is a private foundation formed in 2013 following the sale of the nonprofit Bayfront Health St. Petersburg. As the steward of an endowment to support health equity in Pinellas County, the Foundation leads, funds, advocates, and partners to create a community in which all people can lead healthy lives. The Foundation advances racially equitable health outcomes by improving the systems and conditions that shape them. It opened its Center for Health Equity in 2019.
Why the Foundation invests in the St. Pete EDC
Dr. Tomalin explained why the Foundation decided to invest in the EDC, saying, “This move adds the critical work and mission of the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg to the important work and mission of the St. Petersburg EDC, an organization that fuels St. Pete’s continued ascent through recruitment of the businesses and people that help us shine. Our city fulfills its stunning potential when it includes opportunities and growth for everyone who calls it home. The work to build a stronger more equitable city is all of ours! We are pleased to partner with the EDC on this important goal.”
Mike Swesey, president & CEO of the St. Pete EDC expressed his appreciation for the organization, saying, “One of the first things I did when I got to St. Pete was to participate in the Building an Equity Movement program. I learned that those who live in Vinoy/ Snell Isle live for an average 82.7 years, and those who live in Campbell Park, a predominantly Black neighborhood, average 66.5 years. That’s 16 years difference in only four miles! It can be hard to think about, let alone talk about, but the Foundation team makes it more comfortable to talk about these kinds of disparities than anyplace I’ve ever been. We are so pleased to have their perspective on our Board.”
“Our city fulfills its stunning potential when it includes opportunities and growth for everyone who calls it home. The work to build a stronger more equitable city is all of ours! We are pleased to partner with the EDC on this important goal.”
Dr. Kanika Tomalin, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg
Learn more
Visit the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg at their website.
And see what else Dr. Tomalin has to say about St. Pete on our website.
