St. Mary Mercy Livonia receives $50,000 grant to support Healthy Livonia, construction of biking and walking path

LIVONIA, Mich. (July 23, 2020) – St. Mary Mercy Livonia announced that it has received a $50,000 grant from the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, through the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Legacy Funds, to help fund construction of the Stark Road Pathway. The planned biking and walking path along Stark Road is part of Bike/Walk Livonia, the city's non-motorized transportation plan, and would connect Hines Parkway and the Stark Road recreation area. The grant is a continuation of the hospital's support for Healthy Livonia, a citywide initiative to strengthen the health and wellbeing of everyone living and working in the community.

"We are excited to connect areas of our community with safe, dedicated pathways so that local residents can move and exercise with more regularity," said Dave Spivey, president of St. Mary Mercy Livonia. "With the support of the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Legacy Funds, area residents are being given the tools and opportunities they need to make healthy choices for themselves."

The proposed Stark Road Pathway is a north-south route between Stark Road recreation area and Hines Parkway. The Stark Road recreation area is located just north of I-96 and west of Farmington Road. It includes the Ford Field Complex, Eddie Edgar Ice Arena, the Livonia Family YMCA, Frost Middle School, and Stymelski Veterans Park. Hines Parkway weaves through the southwest section of Livonia. It is part of a larger Wayne County recreation greenway that connects Livonia to Dearborn Heights and Plymouth.

“This is a great step for our Bike/Walk plan,” said Mayor Maureen Miller Brosnan. “Providing a safe pathway for people in Livonia to enjoy the Hines Parkway has been a priority for our community. We appreciate this grant for essentially expanding Livonia’s park system with new accessibility to Hines Park.”

The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation established the endowed Legacy Funds at the Community Foundation to provide support to issue areas that were important to Mr. Wilson during his lifetime: Caregivers, Design and Access, and Youth Sports across the region, and Grosse Pointe Community Assets, to support projects in Ralph’s hometown. Endowment funds are designed to grow over time and provide funding in perpetuity for charitable causes according to the Wilson Foundation’s wishes. Since 2016, over $5.5 million in 234 grants have been awarded to nonprofits in southeast Michigan.

Healthy Livonia is a collaboration that leverages resources of the City of Livonia, Livonia Parks and Recreation Department, the Chamber of Commerce, Livonia Public Schools, and St. Mary Mercy Livonia hospital. This citywide initiative is intended to reach beyond the walls of any one organization to strengthen the health and wellness of everyone in the community. Started in July 2016, Healthy Livonia seeks to "Make the Healthy Choice the Easy Choice," with the mission, "To energize a community-wide focus on healthy living in Livonia, Michigan," and the vision, "To be the healthiest city in the United States."

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The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan

The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is a full-service philanthropic organization leading the way to positive change in our region. As a permanent community endowment built by gifts from thousands of individuals and organizations, the Foundation supports a wide variety of activities benefiting education, arts and culture, health, human services, community development, and civic affairs. Since its inception, the Foundation has distributed more than $1.1 billion through more than 74,000 grants to nonprofit organizations throughout Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe, Washtenaw, St. Clair, and Livingston counties. For more information, please visit www.cfsem.org

About St. Mary Mercy Livonia


St. Mary Mercy Livonia is a 304-bed hospital providing acute-care medical and health services to our community by board-certified doctors and registered nurses. We provide the highest quality services with leading-edge technology in our 24-hour Emergency Center, Senior ER, Heart & Vascular Center, Cancer Center, Birthing Center, Women’s Center, Center for Joint Replacement, Inpatient and Outpatient Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Units, Sleep Center, Wound Care Center, and Michigan Bariatric Institute. We also offer same-day diagnostic testing and a variety of community health education services.

For additional information about St. Mary Mercy, please visit www.stmarymercy.org.

About Saint Joseph Mercy Health System

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System (SJMHS) is a health care organization serving seven counties in southeast Michigan including Livingston, Washtenaw, Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Jackson, and Lenawee. It includes 537-bed St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor, 443-bed St. Joseph Mercy Oakland in Pontiac, 304-bed St. Mary Mercy Livonia, 136-bed St. Joseph Mercy Livingston in Howell, and 133-bed St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea. Combined, the five hospitals are licensed for 1,553 beds, have five outpatient health centers, six urgent care facilities, more than 25 specialty centers; employ more than 13,400 individuals and have a medical staff of nearly 2,700 physicians. SJMHS has annual operating revenues of about $1.9 billion and returns about $120 million to its communities annually through charity care and community benefit programs.