HEALTHIER TOGETHER Partners with Washington Park Faith Leaders to Engage Residents

Volunteers pack fresh fruits and vegetables for walk-in and car-side deliveries.

On Saturday, December 14th HEALTHIER TOGETHER helped to support and participate in a community-wide food give-away in Washington Park, Illinois.  The event, hosted at the Mount Calvary Church of God in Christ, was a true collaboration that utilized resources provided by the St. Louis Area Foodbank, Ameren Illinois, Holland Construction, the Gateway Region YMCA, area faith leaders and a host of other volunteers.  This was the second neighborhood engagement event convened in Washington Park by HEALTHIER TOGETHER's Community Safety Work group, whose members include volunteers from the Mount Calvary Church of God in Christ, the House of Prayer for All Nations, Ameren Illinois, the East Side Aligned Movement, Age Smart Community Resources and the Health Department.  The first, was a summertime Brighten the Block activity, supported by Ameren Illinois.

Throughout the event, volunteers engaged with area residents on both a walk-in and drive-through basis to provide an abundance of healthy food options and warm holiday cheer.  The two-truckloads of food provided by the St. Louis Area Foodbank helped volunteers serve over 500 families by distributing 14,820 fresh and healthy food items.  This represents over 29,000 pounds of impact that can inspire other community health and safety activities in the New Year.  

The Community Safety Work Group is currently planning several follow-up events in 2020 to engage area faith leaders and residents in working together to build sustainable neighborhood alliances to make a long-term impact on improving the quality of life and overall health in our metro-east communities. The group's next event - a Community Impact Forum breakfast - will be an opportunity to join with other citizens and groups to learn how we can work together to help improve the quality of life and health in our neighborhoods and communities. The breakfast forum will be hosted by the House of Prayer for All Nations, in East St. Louis on Saturday, January 25th from 10am to Noon.  This event will also feature an overview of the HEALTHIER TOGETHER movement, Work Group presentations, a Q & A session and engagement opportunities for local citizens and other volunteers.  For more information about this event, visit the HEALTHIER TOGETHER Events page.

Teamwork turned a cold day into a warm experience.

This side of the assembly line included dairy products and other healthy food options.