December 6, 2018
The South Georgian Bay CHC is working to build a healthier, more inclusive community
What: Members of the community are invited to join the South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre’s Nordic Pole Walking Group to help celebrate Community Health and Wellbeing week. No experience necessary. Poles can be provided.
When: Thursday, October 25 from 9:45 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Where: RecPlex Gazebo by the Wasaga Beach YMCA
Contact: Louise Picot, Communications, 705-606-1549 or Louise@LouisePicot.com
From October 22 to 28, members of the Alliance for Healthier Communities are preparing for a week of special events to help celebrate Community Health and Wellbeing week. The goal of this province-wide initiative is to help raise awareness about the many different ways that locally-focused programs and services, community engagement, and ongoing advocacy on behalf of people facing barriers to health, can help build healthier places to live. It’s a chance to shine the spotlight on the many people in our community – including volunteers, partners, community members and staff – who spend time every day striving to build a healthier community.
“To build a healthier community, the first place we start is with the people we serve. Our biggest insights come from their needs, their ideas, and their feedback about our programs and services,” says Heather Klein Gebbinck, Executive Director, South Georgian Bay CHC. “That’s why we work with many local partners in our community to break down barriers of all kinds and ensure better health and wellbeing for all.”
Focusing on local needs and barriers such as social isolation, poverty, and food insecurity increases people’s capacity to stay healthy, and promotes trust between the community and health providers. By working together to build healthier communities, the rewards are greater for everyone: fewer people get sick, more people are engaged with their own wellbeing, and that leads to reduced costs for health care, and stronger families and communities.
Background: Community Health and Wellbeing Week is coordinated by the Alliance for Healthier Communities of which the South Georgian Bay CHC is a member. Each of the more than 100 members of the Alliance is governed by its local community members. This equips them to tailor services and programs to community needs and focus on populations facing health barriers.
To schedule an interview with Heather Klein Gebbinck and to learn more about how the South Georgian Bay CHC is helping to build a healthier community in 2018-19, please contact Louise Picot, Communications at 705-606-1540 or Louise@LouisePicot.com.
For a full schedule of Community Health and Wellbeing activities across Ontario, please visit https://www.allianceon.org