Park City’s Hope Alliance receives $5,000 Select Health Award for vision care

Hope Alliance provides free vision care and prescription eyeglasses to underserved communities in Utah and internationally. The Park City-based nonprofit is one of 10 Utah organizations receiving a 2026 Select Health Award. Photo: Hope Alliance

Local nonprofit is one of 10 Utah organizations recognized for addressing community health needs

PARK CITY, Utah — Park City-based Hope Alliance has received a $5,000 Select Health Award for providing vision care and prescription eyeglasses to underserved communities in Utah and abroad.

Hope Alliance was one of 10 Utah organizations selected for the 2026 awards, which recognize community groups addressing factors that affect health beyond traditional medical care, including access to health services, food, housing, education and social support. Select Health awarded $150,000 to 30 organizations across Utah, Idaho and Nevada, with each recipient receiving $5,000.

The recognition comes as the nonprofit continues expanding vision care from its home base in Park City.

The organization operates the Hope Alliance Vision Center inside People’s Health Clinic on Round Valley Drive, where eligible uninsured and underinsured residents of Summit and Wasatch counties can receive free comprehensive eye exams, prescription glasses, and referrals for additional care.

Hope Alliance describes its mission as bringing vision care and eyeglasses to underserved communities. Building on that mission, the nonprofit has worked internationally for more than 25 years and currently provides services in Utah, Guatemala, Uganda, and Mexico.

The organization has also been working to expand access beyond its permanent clinics. To that end, Hope Alliance’s Vision Van Go initiative brings free eye exams and prescription glasses directly to Utah communities, including schools, shelters, senior centers, and rural areas where transportation or other barriers can make accessing care difficult.

Select Health said this year’s recipients were chosen for addressing what health professionals often call social drivers of health, the conditions outside a doctor’s office that can affect a person’s ability to stay healthy.

“Many factors beyond medical care shape health,” Select Health President and CEO Rob Hitchcock said in announcing the awards. He cited housing, nutritious food, education, social support, and preventive services as factors influencing health and well-being.

In announcing Hope Alliance’s selection, Select Health highlighted the nonprofit’s efforts to expand access to vision care and eyeglasses, noting that these services can affect people’s ability to learn, work, and manage daily life. That point also reflects the organization’s local work in Park City.

That connection is also central to Hope Alliance’s local program. In Park City, the organization says it established its center to address vision care needs among Summit and Wasatch County residents who otherwise lack access to eye care.

The other nine Utah recipients are Brigham City Community Center with Senior Services, Building Youth Around the World, National Society for English Language Learners, Pantry to Porch, Playworks Utah, Salt Lake Harm Reduction Project, Tooele Education Foundation, Uintah Basin Association of Governments Community Services Department and Youthlinc.

For nearly two decades, Select Health says its awards program has provided more than $1 million to community organizations across Utah, Idaho, and Nevada.