The Inclusive Alliance — a Syracuse based Independent Practice Association (IPA) of health and social service nonprofit agencies primarily serving Cayuga, Cortland, Madison, Onondaga, and Oswego counties — has announced a new non-profit organization, PEACE, Inc., as part of its network.

PEACE is a federal designated Community Action Agency (CAA) that serves more than 8,000 clients in Syracuse, Onondaga County, and portions of Oswego County.

Through their membership, PEACE will join 28 other non-profit organizations across Central and Upstate New York that benefit from capacity building, joint contracting, shared services, and group purchasing opportunities, according to Inclusive Alliance officials.

“We are thrilled to have PEACE, Inc. as a member of Inclusive Alliance,” said Lauren Wetterhahn, executive director of Inclusive Alliance.

“As a coalition of diverse providers, we believe that working collectively is the key to providing the highest quality of care, decreasing administrative costs, and successfully transitioning to managed care and value-based care,” Wetterhahn said.

“The addition of PEACE, Inc. with their focus on antipoverty services, further strengthens our network’s ability to address social determinants of health and to achieve our overall goals,” Wetterhahn added.

Incorporated in 1968, PEACE, Inc. follows a guiding principle of “Maximum Feasible Participation,” or the concept that those who are served by the CAA must also be involved with the organization’s decision-making processes.

The agency’s mission is to “help people in the community realize their potential for becoming self-sufficient.”

It does so through 9 antipoverty programs:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters;

• 6 Family Resource Centers;

• Free Tax Preparation;

• Head Start and Early Head Start;

• Department of Energy and Housing programs;

• Americorps Senior;

• Foster Grandparent Program;

• Eastwood Community Center;

• Senior Nutrition and Senior Support Services.

“In joining the Inclusive Alliance, PEACE, Inc. is excited to partner with an established network of providers that, together, can improve the health and well-being of not only our agency’s clients but the community as a whole,” said Carolyn D. Brown, executive director of PEACE.

To learn more visit peace-caa.org or inclusivealliance.org