July 10, 2023
– by Arturo Menefee –
Over the past two years, the Equitable Neighborhoods Initiative has been working hard to address COVID-19 and improve health equity in 15 underserved communities across the beautiful state of Alabama. We’re thrilled to announce that our work will continue with the award of a 1-year, $3.7 million extension of the original grant. This will allow us to continue our work with our partner communities, add new dimensions to the initiative, and, perhaps most excitingly, add five new partner communities to our impact. The support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Alabama Department of Public Health means ENI will work with 20 communities in the state over three years with a total of $7.8 million.
ENI has already made significant strides in addressing health disparities exacerbated by COVID-19 in participating communities. This extension will allow us to equip more Alabama communities to leverage their assets to improve health equity and build capacity for a healthier future.
We want to welcome our new partner communities of Fayette, Guin, Sulligent and Haleyville in northwest Alabama along with Prichard in Mobile County. These communities will join Bayou La Batre, Blountsville, Camp Hill, Coden, Collinsville, Crossville, Dadeville, Goodwater, Hobson City, Kilpatrick, LaFayette, Ma-Chis Lower Creek Indian Tribe of Alabama, Midway, MOWA Choctaw Indians and Pittsview.
To date, our original 15 communities have developed health resource directories that help residents access existing health resources and hosted mental health first aid workshops to address pressing issues affecting youth and adults. Most of the communities have hosted health fairs, clinics or workshops tailored specifically to their town’s greatest health needs, health needs that were further aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. ENI communities have created unique opportunities for improving health by doing things such as starting walking groups and hosting inclusive discussions on the future health goals of each community.
If you want to learn more about how you can connect with our work, reach out to our team. You can also follow ENI on Facebook and Instagram. Or you can email us at info@enialabama.org. We look forward to connecting with you!
