From MHS Alliance to MHS Association
In 2019, MHS identified a need to develop a clear and defined identity. Now, in 2023, we have made significant strides in this development with the launch of a new brand – MHS Association.
With the help of LightBox, a Goshen, IN, branding firm, MHS, and its stakeholders were guided through avenues of potential change, including the exploration of a new name. After much deliberation, the transition to MHS Association felt like the best representation of who we are and how we serve.
Along with this rebrand came an identified need for clear delineation between the two branches of MHS – MHS Alliance and MHS Consulting. While MHS Alliance will be known as MHS Association, MHS Consulting will operate under the same name.
Originally known as Mennonite Health Services, we’re a national association of Anabaptist health and human service ministries. Anchored in Anabaptist values, MHS Association inspires and strengthens member ministries by integrating faith and work, providing leadership development and best practices in board governance, providing faith-grounded strategic business tools, and access to a network of Anabaptist organizations. MHS Consulting is a fully owned, for-profit subsidiary of MHS Association providing a variety of consulting services including leadership training, board strengthening, operational consulting, interim placement, and executive searches.
Although there is no name change for MHS Consulting, both MHS organizations are receiving a new visual identity. Representing rootedness, growth, and abundance, the new MHS logos demonstrate the sibling relationship between the two while differentiating with colors and icons. Both icons are circular branches, symbolizing the wholeness found within our community of Anabaptist organizations. The color palettes also draw on nature, with allusions to the earth, sun, sky, and sea.
The new branding was announced on March 9 at Mennonite Health Assembly on the final morning of the conference. In her presentation, Karen Lehman, CEO of MHS Association and MHS Consulting noted, “There is a difference between being Allied together versus being bonded together or linked together through common values and a faith connection which is better reflected in the word Association.”
We are proud of the historical value MHS has brought to its members, and we know that MHS Association will continue to pave the way for supporting the growth of our member ministries and missions. We are confident that this rebrand will help us to better tell the story of our service, and will continue to tie us to our commitment to the Anabaptist faith and values that guide our work.