Samiyah in Southeast Kansas for Pathways Site Visit
On November 9-10, Samiyah ParaCremer traveled to southeast Kansas to visit Pathways site coordinators. The Pathways project is a Blue Cross and Blue Cross of Kansas initiative for which KHI is one of the technical assistance providers. Communities visited include Labette and Montgomery Counties, Wilson County, Crawford County and the City of Columbus in Cherokee County. These visits included sites in both their first and second years of the Pathways initiative. It was incredibly helpful to see the communities and better understand the context in which community coordinators are doing this work.
Pathways to a Healthy Kansas combines community-wide evidence-based solutions and promising practices for improving active living, healthy eating and tobacco prevention to make a large impact across multiple sectors in communities. The program provides community coalitions with the tools and resources needed to engage their communities and remove barriers to healthy living. The KHI Pathways team provides technical support around data, evaluation and Health in All Policies. Wyatt created the Pathways Data dashboard listing current and past recipients and packages of work.
Touring the City of Columbus’s new walking trail with coordinators, city officials and Pathways TA providers.
Wilson County planning a large walking trail around the lake in the background.
Coffeyville’s Fresh Start Youth Garden Project featuring community coordinators, volunteers, and TA providers. Third from right is Jobi who manages this garden and has done exceptional work in making the garden a place for youth to learn and collaborate. This year they began selling produce subscription baskets to community members to help fund supplies and activities for the youth caring for the garden.
Crawford County’s Brad Fourby of Leafy Green Farms in Pittsburg. Brad is working with Pathways on a Farm-to-School package to begin providing locally grown fresh produce year-round. The produce is sustainably grown in shipping containers using vertical hydroponics.
Matt O’Malley explains the Arma Community Garden’s prototype raised beds for wheel-chair users to TA providers, the community coordinator, and Arma mayor. Crawford County plans to apply for funds to put in a new sidewalk for better wheelchair access to the community garden.
A phase 1 Pathways project, we toured the McCune High Tunnel in Crawford County. Much of this food is either donated or used by for the McCune Farm to Market food retailer next door to provide fresh, affordable access to healthy foods.
Learning about the Labette Community College Food Pantry. It is a frequently used pantry with both fresh, frozen, and shelf-stable items. Pathways provided funding to obtain refrigeration units for the pantry to better serve healthy food to students.
Pathways KHI Team – Tatiana Lin, Samiyah ParaCremer, Ehi Idoko and Wyatt Beckman.
Staff Christmas Party at The Oread
KHI staff and guests had a fantastic evening filled with delicious food, endless talk and plenty of laughs with the white elephant gift exchange. The Kansas coasters were a huge hit, but Bob couldn't retain them for very long. Thank you to Lyndsey and Miranda for coordinating the location and hors d'oeuvres for the holiday celebration.
Samiyah’s Graduation from Oxford
During Thanksgiving, Samiyah ParaCremer attended her Oxford graduation ceremony. Her family, including her mother and grandmother, are shown in front of the Christmas tree at Blenheim Palace (birthplace of Winston Churchill). The Radcliffe Camera, a building of Oxford University, was in the background of the graduation photo with the bicycles. The grads were photographed during the ceremony in Oxford's Sheldonian Theater. The ceremony was mostly in Latin, and they were compelled to swear in Latin to support the university's objectives. The blue hood indicates you had received your MSc. From all of us at KHI, Congratulations, Samiyah!
Thanks to our Pathways team for all the great photos on recent community engagements. And - Congratulations, Samiyah, on your graduation from Oxford!