Program areas at Independent Order of Foresters / Us Branch
Insurance Benefits: Foresters provided Insurance Benefits, including life, health and annuity benefits, for approximately 2,306,794 members across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The cost for providing such insurance benefits was approximately $793 million, excluding changes in actuarial reserves.
Foresters Community Partnerships: Every year, Foresters offers direct support to charities that enhance the well-being of families and communities. Partnerships with non-profit organizations like, but not limited to, Whole Kids Foundation, National Clean-Up (Clean Trails), Evergreen Foundation, and Cash for Kids (in the UK) make this possible at a local level. Members work with these organizations, lending their time to improve the quality of life and well-being of local families and their communities. Sustainability Partnerships: To support giving back to our communities and investing in educating our members and their families on the importance of living a sustainable life, Foresters has partnered with the following organizations: The Whole Kids Foundation: - The Whole Kids Foundation supports children and their families in learning about nutrition and wellness. By partnering with organizations like Foresters, the Whole Kids Foundation helps provide grants for school gardens and organizes sustainability activities like pollinator preservation events. Evergreen - Evergreen champions sustainable change in communities across Canada to help make cities more livable, green and prosperous. Since 2020, Foresters has partnered with Evergreen to create a series of sustainable gardens at the Evergreen Brick Works site in Toronto, Ontario, that supports pollinators, provides access to nutritious food, and fosters a regenerative ecosystem. Clean Trails/National Cleanup Day: - Clean Trails is a community of people focused on keeping the world's natural spaces and the trails that pass through them clear of litter. National Cleanup Day is an initiative by Clean Trails that calls on people to join or start a cleanup project in their communities. One Tree Planted: - One Tree Planted uses donations from people and businesses to plant trees in areas that need them most to help fight climate change. Individuals can get more directly involved by starting fundraisers or becoming tree ambassadors and organizing their own tree planting initiatives. In 2023, Foresters invested about $236,000 to support building gardens in member communities across US, UK and Canada. Playground Builds: To provide equitable access to safe play spaces across the 3 countries that we represent (US, UK, and Canada), Foresters has partnered with the following organizations: KaBOOM! (NA): - KaBOOM! is a national non-profit organization dedicated to bringing balanced active play into the daily lives of all kids. With the help of members, employees, and our sales partners, we built 2 playgrounds in 2023, one in Asheville, North Carolina, and the other in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Timotay Playscapes (UK): - Timotay designs and installs playgrounds for schools, nurseries, and public spaces for children of all ages and abilities, recognizing that outdoor play is not just for fun, but it is an important part of every child's physical, social, educational, and cognitive development. In 2023, with the help of members and employees, we built 1 playground in London, England. In 2023, Foresters invested about $332,000 to support building equitable and safe playspaces for children in communities across US, UK and Canada. Cash for Kids (UK): Cash for Kids is an umbrella brand for Bauer Radio's network of registered local charities. Since 2009, Foresters has been working with Cash for Kids to provide volunteer opportunities for our members that support children and family time. In 2023, Foresters provided approximately $29,845 to sponsor the Cash for Kids Mission Christmas campaign. With this support, the campaign raised over £8 million in cash, gifts and toys and helped almost 200,000 children and their families to have a better holiday season. Throughout November and December, Foresters staff hosted virtual events throughout UK, where members and their families created care packages for these disadvantaged children.
Fraternal Benefits and Grants: Foresters provide its members, at no additional cost, with a variety of fraternal benefits outside of the traditional insurance benefits described above. These benefits demonstrate Foresters commitment to the purpose of assisting members, enhancing their well-being, and benefiting their communities. These benefits provide aid in times of trouble, illness or need. The following programs were funded by Foresters for its members. Competitive Scholarship Program (US/Canada/UK): - Foresters granted 370 scholarships valued at $2,500/year in local currency in North America and £1,000/year in the UK, to members, their spouses, children and grandchildren. This benefit was awarded based upon academic credentials and participation in charitable and philanthropic activities. Foresters provided approximately $886,316 towards the Competitive scholarship program in 2023. Foresters Renew Program (US/Canada/UK): - Foresters granted 370 scholarships valued at $1,000/year in local currency in North America and £1,000/year in the UK, to members, their spouses, children and grandchildren. This benefit was awarded based upon academic credentials and participation in charitable and philanthropic activities. Foresters provided approximately $320,396 towards the Renew program in 2023. Lifelong Learning/LawAssure (US/Canada/UK): - Foresters provided these two personal assistance benefits to Foresters members who are seeking learning & development in areas such as but not limited to financial planning, health & wellness, and professional development... as well as access to an online document preparation tool to support in documental creation such as Wills & Power of Attorney". Lifelong Learning allows Foresters members to explore learning opportunities through a customizable online platform where they can learn at their own pace and track their progress. Lifelong Learning provides members with access to over 200 in-demand, personal development courses and is offered to Foresters members in all geographic areas. It cost approximately $146,049 to fund this benefit in 2023. LawAssure is an online document preparation service that gives you access to customizable documents, making it simple and convenient. Members can create customizable wills, powers of attorney and healthcare directives from the comfort of their own home. It cost approximately $243,876 to fund this benefit in 2023. Connected Health Program/Foresters Go Dacadoo (US/Canada/UK): - Foresters Go is digital wellness app-based benefit where members can proactively track their diet and fitness habits using different wellness features and earn reward points. Purpose & Community (P&C) is a purpose-driven section of this member benefit designed to reward members and boost their wellbeing through volunteering. In 2023, over 9,604 participated in the Foresters Go program and earned rewards points from downloading and registering the Foresters Go app, from promotions and in-app activities and challenges. It cost over $1.8 million to fund this program in 2023. Critical/Terminal Illness benefits (US/Canada): - In 2023, 198 Foresters members received approximately $457,283 in critical illness benefits to help defray the cost of health care. Orphan Benefits (US/Canada): - In 2023, Foresters provided approximately $238,124 to legal guardians for care and support of orphans. Additionally, orphans received four years college scholarships. Senior Member Benefits (US/Canada): - Foresters provided complete residential housing and/board for 22 of its most needy members at two retirement homes. In 2023, approximately $787,348 in services were provided. Funding Local Community Activities - Granting (US/Canada/UK): - In 2023, Foresters contributed approximately $3.39 million to the Branch Network in the US, UK and Canada. These funds are held in trust in separate accounts and is administered by the Foresters staff on behalf of Foresters Branches in the US, UK and Canada. Members can apply for these funds to carry out fraternal and community volunteer activities. In 2023, 4,492 activities took place engaging 30,920 members. These funds were used to organize community involvement activities that responded to a real need in a member's community supporting charitable organizations such as children's hospitals, local Boys and Girl Clubs. Related to this initiative, Foresters also supports strengthening families by allowing members to apply for funding to organize fun-family activities in their communities. The funds held in the Branch Network are used to support these types of activities as well. Member Engagement Activities (US/Canada/UK): - In 2023, Foresters invested over $355,585 in engaging our members in social activities designed to give back to our members and teach them about the benefits available to them, and volunteer activities designed to give back to our communities and teach them how to volunteer and host activities on their own.