Submitted
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas (BCBSKS) announces it has selected the Live Well Saline County Coalition, along with 18 other communities, as grantees for its third phase of the Pathways to a Healthy Kansas (Pathways) initiative. BCBSKS will be partnering with these community coalitions to improve healthy eating, active living, commercial tobacco prevention, and mental health.
Tammy Walker Cancer Center was selected as the fiscal agent for the two-year Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant, and Daniel Craig, Cancer Outreach Coordinator at Tammy Walker Cancer Center, who served as the lead grant writer, will be the project manager.
Since the Pathways initiative began in 2016, BCBSKS has facilitated 748 grants and projects in communities throughout Kansas, including Live Well Saline County in Saline County. The Pathways program was created to inspire long-lasting, community-wide health and well-being in communities across Kansas.
“We’ve seen the commitment from Live Well Saline County and know they are ready to continue the work to improve the health and well-being of the communities they serve,” said Matt All, President/CEO of BCBSKS. “For more than 80 years, we have been dedicated to helping not only our members but all Kansans live better, healthier lives. Through our Pathways initiative, we are helping remove barriers to accessing healthy foods, increasing physical activity, preventing commercial tobacco use, and improving mental health. We are thrilled to continue this program with our new and returning Pathways grantees and can’t wait to see the difference they make in their communities.”
Each Pathways community will receive coordination assistance from BCBSKS to get started. Additionally, organizations within Saline County will have the opportunity to apply for non-competitive implementation grants to fund projects that will help reach the Live Well Saline County goals for the initiative.
During the previous four-year Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant (2020-2024), Saline County invested $245,288 in noncompetitive implementation grant dollars through three grant projects to increase accessibility and safety for the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank.
• The Placemaking grantwas utilized to develop a site plan and install four solar lights.
• The Trail Infrastructure grantwas utilized to support construction of a sidewalk between the Salina Emergency Aid Food Bank, the Broadway business corridor, and the South Street neighborhood, including links to OCCK bus stops.
• The Safe Routes to Food grantwas utilized to expand the parking lot by adding 12 additional parking stalls and six bike racks.
A community celebration event was held in January to celebrate the completion of these three projects.
“The Pathways initiative has provided our community with the tools and resources needed to take our work to the next level,” said Daniel Craig. “Through a Chronic Disease Risk Reduction grant from the Kansas Department of Health & Environment, the Live Well Saline County Coalition was able to go through a strategic planning process, which has enabled us to increase our focus areas to include mental health, engage new members, and expand our ability to bring grant dollars into Saline County. We are looking forward to partnering with other organizations on these two grant initiatives to help make Saline County a healthier place for all.”
The Pathways initiative combines community-wide, evidence-based solutions and practices to help Kansas communities improve active living, healthy eating, behavioral health, and commercial tobacco prevention. It is structured around five pathways that require collaboration across a community. These pathways include economic stability, education access and quality, health care access and quality, neighborhoods and built environment, and social and community context.
To learn more about Pathways, visit bcbsks.com/blue-health-initiatives/pathways.