Sitka Health Summit chooses two community wellness projects
Helping teens and elders were the themes as Sitka residents gathered to choose two community wellness projects to pursue in 2018-19 at the 12th annual Sitka Health Summit planning day held Thursday, Oct. 4, at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus.
There were about 50 initial projects proposed, in a variety of categories, such as physical activity, nutrition, mental health, health equity, etc. The project proposals were split into two categories (one-year projects and long-term projects) and the field was narrowed down to 5-7 semifinalists in each category. The top project from each category will receive up to $2,000 in seed money, as well as some facilitation services from the Sitka Health Summit advisory team, to help get the projects off the ground.
The winning one-year project is to create a teen center with fun, resources, space, wifi, comfy furniture, gaming, food and discreet birth control options. The top long-term project is to expand services and housing options for elder care.
“Teens and elders are important groups to Sitka,” Sitka Health Summit Coalition member Doug Osborne said. “Their health is critical, and it will be exciting to see how these two goals evolve.”
Each of the two chosen community wellness projects will host a kick-off event in the near future, and these events are open to the public and anybody who wants to help with the project. The projects, their kick-off meetings, and contact people are listed below.
Teen center with fun, resources, space, wifi, comfy furniture, gaming, food and discrete birth control options — 2 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 27, at Agave Mexican Restaurant (236 Lincoln Street, use entrance off Harbor Drive), contact Maggie Gallin, 966-1377, gallinm@sitkaschools.org
Expand services and housing options for elder care — 1-2:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 24, at Swan Lake Senior Center, contact Erin Matthes, 966-8720, ematthes@searhc.org
In addition to the two project kick-off meetings, the monthly Sitka Health Summit Wooch.een (Tlingít for working together) health networking lunch meeting will be at noon on Friday, Oct. 26, at a location TBA (probably the Sitka Community Hospital downstairs classroom). For more information, contact Doug Osborne at 747-0373 or Holly Marban at 966-8938.
The Sitka Health Summit is coordinated and funded by a coalition of local groups that includes the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC), Sitka Community Hospital, Sitka Conservation Society, Sitka Counseling and Prevention Services, and the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus. Additional support is provided by the State of Alaska Division of Public Health-Section of Public Health Nursing, Southeast Radiation Oncology Center, White’s Pharmacy, the Sitka Food Co-Op, ALPS Federal Credit Union, Sitka Vision Center, Dr. Marley’s Family Dentistry, the Sitka Community Hospital Foundations, and the Sitka Health Summit Coalition.
For more information about the Sitka Health Summit and its current and past projects, go to http://www.sitkahealthsummit.org/. Photos from the summit are posted on the Sitka Health Summit page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaHealthSummit.
Check out a gallery of scenes from the 2018 Sitka Health Summit planning day, https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2139329732744571&type=1&l=18b6f9841a
