Fsfe Food Coalition

ADVANCING NUTRITION SECURITY AND HEALTH EQUITY-HEALTHY ARCHULETA SUPPORTS ADVANCING NUTRITION SECURITY AND HEALTHY EQUITY IN ARCHULETA COUNTY THROUGH COMMUNITY-INITIATED SOLUTIONS. ACTIVITIES INCLUDED PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTING A COMMUNITY PARTICIPATORY NUTRITION SECURITY-HEALTH EQUITY ASSESSMENT. THIS EFFORT AIMS TO UNDERSTAND FROM THE COMMUNITY THE CURRENT STATE OF NUTRITION SECURITY AND PRIMARY HEALTHCARE ACCESS AND UTILIZATION AND TO IDENTIFY ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THESE AREAS. COMMUNITY MEMBERS (n=241) PARTICIPATED IN SHARING INFORMATION FOR THE ASSESSMENT THROUGH VARIOUS DATA COLLECTION METHODS. ADDITIONALLY, PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS (n=35) HAVE BEEN ENGAGED IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS AND THE FORMATION OF A HEALTH PARTNER COALITION (n=10). THIS EFFORT ALSO INCLUDED THE DEVELOPMENT AND FACILITATION OF A COMMUNITY-BASED HEALTH FAIR TO CONNECT COMMUNITY MEMBERS (n=177) WITH LOW-COST LABORATORY TESTS (n=149), CONNECTION WITH HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS, AND HEALTH AND WELLNESS EDUCATIONAL SESSIONS. HEALTHY ARCHULETA HAS ALSO WORKED WITH SCHOOLS TO ENGAGE YOUTH (n=190) IN SHARING THEIR VOICE ON ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE COMMUNITY AS PART OF THIS EFFORT THROUGH SCHOOL-BASED AND OUT-OF-SCHOOL ACTIVITIES.

Community cohesion-healthy Archuleta works to advance community cohesion across affinity groups, including youth, spanish language community members, growers and producers, and other sessions related to nutrition security and health equity. In 2023, over 20 youth offered services to the community, focusing on the Food system and health equity. Additionally, over 50 spanish-speaking residents were connected with Food and/or health resources, and over 50 community members participated in at least one affinity group session. Other activities hosted and/or facilitated by Healthy Archuleta related to community cohesion in 2023 included garden education classes in english and spanish (n=25), composting education (n=5), youth summer internships (n=3), sharing information at community events (n=10), enhancing awareness related to the elements of the Food system via facebook, e-news, instagram, and local news outlets (n=1500).

Healthy Food access-healthy Archuleta supports the Archuleta county Food pantry network through coordination and alignment. One aspect of this work has been to support the seven Food pantries in Archuleta county through the Food pantry network with access to locally sourced foods distributed through the Food distribution center. Food purchases support local farmers, ranchers, and Food establishments to provide fred Food for the Food pantries. Health Archuleta purchased over 10,000 pounds of local ground been and fresh produce to support the Food pantry network. Additionally, Food drives in the community donated over 8,000 frequently requested items to the Food pantry network. Additionally, Healthy Archuleta is piloting hydroponic lettuce production to distrubute fresh greens to Food pantry clients through the Food pantry network. This year, over 850 items were harvested and distributed.