Submitted
Live Well Saline County members Daniel Craig, Michelle Coats, and Sheila Kjellberg recently attended the Pathways to A Healthy Kansas Spring Convening in Lawrence, Kansas to receive recognition on behalf of Live Well Saline County for successful completion of the four year $500,000 Pathways to A Healthy Kansas grant initiative.
The grant funding included a coordination grant of $200,000 for each community along with the opportunity to apply for non-competitive implementation grants amounting to $300,000, for a total of up to $500,000. Live Well Saline County designated the Tammy Walker Cancer Center as the fiduciary agent. Daniel Craig, Cancer Outreach Coordinator at Tammy Walker Cancer Center, is the current chair of Live Well Saline County and was the lead grant writer and grant manager for the project.
Live Well Saline County allocated $245,288 from the Pathways to A Healthy Kansas grant towards initiatives aimed at increasing access and safety at the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank.
Projects include solar lighting, a site plan, 12 additional parking spaces, six bike racks, and a sidewalk that connects the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank to the Broadway business corridor including links to two City Go Bus stops. Additional funding went to support worksite wellness programs, create a hospital garden and relaxation area, and provide scholarship opportunities for community members to attend training through the Kansas Leadership Center.
“The Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant enabled us to bring everyone together so rather than doing a lot of great individual programs and efforts we were able to work more collaboratively as a community,” said Live Well Saline County Chair Daniel Craig. “Being part of the Pathways to a Healthy Kansas cohort provided opportunities for us to learn from other communities and share things that have helped us be successful. Having four years of funding allowed us to be strategic and select projects that will create a long lasting impact on the community.”
Live Well Saline County is planning a community celebration event to highlight the initiatives at the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank. The event will be held in late summer or early fall once the parking lot project at the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank is complete and will serve as a celebration of the 15th anniversary of Live Well Saline County.
Del Myers and Daniel Craig started live Well Saline County in 2009 with support from Ellen Hogeland and Chris Curtis as a way to bring together community organizations focusing on health and wellness to better align community goals and bring in additional grant funding to the community.
The coalition has representation from many organizations in the community including the Salina Family YMCA, Saline County Health Department, Prairieland Market, Salina Regional Health Center, Tammy Walker Cancer Center, Kansas State Research and Extension, Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank, Salina Family Healthcare Center, Kansas Center for Rural Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Church of the Cross UMC, NAMI Kansas, Kansas Wesleyan University, Central Kansas Mental Health Center, City of Salina, and OCCK, Inc.
The coalition welcomes participation from individuals and organizations in the community that have an interest in health and wellness. For more information on Live Well Saline County, contact Daniel Craig at 785-452-4848.