Reminder: Faith-Rooted Organizing Training March 4th
Come learn how to address social and economic injustices in a way that draws power from the roots of one’s faith. Faith-rooted organizing is a method of organizing based on the Civil Rights movement, bringing people together to create change. It will be held Friday March 4th from 9:00am to 5:30pm at Judson Memorial Church (55 Washington Square South, New York, NY 10012). To register, click this link or paste into your browser: http://www.nycharities.org/events/EventLevels.aspx?ETID=3154 or contact Saralyn Jones atsjones@nyfaithjustice.org or Neise Martin at nmartin@nyfaithjustice.org or (212) 870-1254.
NY Faith & Justice’s Minute for Health Campaign
How can your community of faith live a healthier lifestyle? NY Faith & Justice and Faith Leaders for Environmental Justice are offering to bring health messages directly to the members of your faith community. Get easy tips on simple things you can do to improve your health and fight against diabetes and obesity. For more information, contact Stephen Tickner at stickner@nyfaithjustice.org or (917) 628-5131.
We Are The Bronx (WATB) Fellowship – Request for Proposals
We Are The Bronx (WATB) is a Fellowship of over 25 non-profit organizations in the Bronx that was created in 2009. WATB provides non-profit professionals opportunities to network and training in leadership development. WATB created the 2010-2011 Grant-Making Committee to provide project funding to a Bronx-based individual or organization that shares the WATB mission of strengthening the borough. This year the 2010-2011 Grant-Making Committee will award a grant of up to $1000 to a Bronx-based individual or organization that engages youth in leadership development or community empowerment endeavors.
Funding opportunity for faith-based organizations in NYC
The Fund for Public Health in New York, on behalf of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, is requesting proposals from faith based institutions/organizations to receive grant funds up to $1,450.00 to implement Phase II of the New York City Walkers for Wellness Program which involves: 1) establishing walking clubs and 2) adopting the New York City Department of Health nutrition policies for social events and regular meetings. Note: Only faith based organizations that have proof of 501c3 non-profit status, operating in the five boroughs of New York City are eligible to apply. Application deadline is 5:00PM Friday, March 18, 2011. For more information, visit here.
Pando Projects – Growing Gardens Growing Kids
Through the non-profit organization Pando Projects, several Community HealthCorps members at the Institute for Family Health are helping Pre-K classes at MidBronx Council Services to grow a community garden. The project will be using Earthboxes which are low-maintenance container gardens that have high yields of produce. The teachers in the Pre-K classes will be given a weekly curriculum for 3 months. They will help their class plant an Earthbox to contribute to the garden. Growing Gardens Growing Kids will increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables, provide hands-on learning so the children understand where food comes from, and teach them nutrition and healthy habits. Read more about Growing Gardens Growing Kids at www.pilot.pandoprojects.org/ying. If you have any questions, contact the project leader Ying Guo through the website.
Grow to Learn NYC
GrowNYC, in collaboration with the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, has launched a new school garden initiative called “Grow to Learn NYC.” “Garden” is being defined broadly to include container gardens and edible walls, not just traditional gardens. At the new website, http://growtolearn.org/, you can find resources for teachers and parents, how-to guides, information about financing school gardens through mini-grants, Garden to Café, and more. Online school garden registration and applying for city resources through GreenThumb can be done at this website as well. You can also contact the experts if you have additional questions or would like help facilitating a garden committee meeting at your school.
Bronx Food & Sustainability Coalition (BxFSC) Meeting: February 28th
Come learn about the BxFSC’s plans for Bronx Week in May, and see how you can get involved, and get a firsthand peek at classroom gardening! The next BxFSC meeting will be graciously hosted by Steve Ritz in his classroom at Discovery High School. Please join us!
Date: Monday, February 28
Time: 6:30pm
Location: Discovery High School, Room #279
2780 Reservoir Avenue, Bronx NY 10468. Discovery High School is located up on the Walton High School campus (take the 4, B or D train to Kingsbridge Rd).
National Nutrition Month & Registered Dietitian Day – March 9th
March is National Nutrition Month and the American Dietetic Association urges you to “Eat Right with Color.” Learn more by attending Registered Dietitian Day on March 9th, where the theme is “Tackling the Challenges of Obesity in the Bronx.” This event is open to healthcare providers and community members, and Honorable Congressman Jose E. Serrano andHonorable Congressman Eliot L. Engel have been invited.
Date: Wednesday March 9, 2011
Time: 11am – 2:30 pm
Location: North Central Bronx Central Hospital (NCBH)
3424 Kossuth Avenue, Bronx NY 10467 on the 17th floor private dining room
RSVP w/ “RD Day” in subject line to meehan.maggie@gmail.com
For further information, see www.gnyda.org or call Gloria Bent MS, RD, CDN, GNYDA at 718-519-2129 or Melissa Pflugh, MS, RD, CDN – President-Elect, GNYDA at 212-342-0713.
Obesity Think Tank meeting March 23rd
On March 23rd, Albert Einstein College of Medicine will host its eighth Obesity Think Tank meeting, which will highlight Bronx Health REACH’s obesity prevention efforts. Come learn about our experiences and strategize new opportunities with us!
“Fostering Policy, Systems and Environmental Changes to Address Obesity and Diabetes in the South Bronx—Lessons Learned from Bronx Health REACH’s Eleven Years of Experience”
Date: Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: The Michael F. Price Center for Genetic and Translational Medicine and The Harold and Muriel Block Research Pavilion
5th Floor Conference Room (Room 551)
Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Jack & Pearl Resnick Campus
1301 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10461
RSVP by March 17, 2011 to: merrilly.calabrese@einstein.yu.edu
Health Disparity Working Group – March 9th, 2011
To join our End Segregated Healthcare campaign, come to our Health Disparities Working Group March 9th, 2011. Our working group meets every 2nd Wednesday of the month at Cosmopolitan Church of Lord Jesus at 39 W. 190th St., Bronx, NY 10468 from 1:30 – 3:30 pm. During our next meeting, we hope to show a documentary of this issue made by New York Lawyers for Public Interest. We will also be discussing future meetings with elected officials, outreach strategy, and next steps in the campaign. Join us and support the Health Equality Bill! Contact Ying Guo at yguo@institute2000.org or at 212-633-0800 ext. 1341 for more information.
Medicaid Reform
Governor Cuomo has created a “Medicaid Redesign Team” to help him cut New York’s Medicaid program by $2 billion and redesign it for the long-term. This 27-member team is made up of only one statewide community organization and has little representation from the public sector. It is primarily dominated by the hospital industry and is led by two men with ties to large, private hospitals. Given the imbalanced composition of the Redesign Team, we are concerned that the “savings” and “reforms” it will propose will also be imbalanced, resulting in cuts to Medicaid benefits, long-term and primary care services in the community, and safety net providers. In New York City, people of color are more than twice as likely to be publicly insured as whites. This means that cuts and bad decisions about reforms to the Medicaid program will have a bigger negative impact on communities of color.The New York City public hearing was held on February 4th, 2011. You can view a video of some of the public hearing at http://tinyurl.com/6l27anv or join the Save Our Safety Net Campaign by emailing soscny@gmail.com. You can stay updated on Medicaid reform through the health justice blog of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (http://healthjustice.wordpress.com/). Here is the link to the latest post and here is a link to key resources related to the Medicaid Redesign Team.
Institute for Family Health News
On February 9th, the Institute for Family Health broke ground to expand its Walton Family Health Center on 177th St and Walton Ave. in the Bronx. The remodeled and expanded center is expected to care for 10,000 more residents of Mt. Hope, University Heights, and West Tremont annually. The Institute is also going to be one of the first federally-funded Teaching Health Centers in the country. It will expand its residency program in its Mid-Hudson Valley health centers to address critical shortages of primary care physicians across the state. “The Institute has a strong track record of training family medicine residents who continue to practice
in high-need communities” once their training is complete, and many of the new physicians that will be trained are expected to continue serving in these communities. For more information and to access the press releases, please visit http://institute2000.org/org/press.htm.