Prevention and Wellness Resources for Rural Communities

These two grant opportunities can help your community toward achieving wellness and prevention goals.  While the gardening grant is rather specific, the Medica Foundation grants are an opportunity for you to think creatively and apply their funding priorities to your program activities:

 

  • The Medica Foundation awards grants in several categories throughout the year.  Their 2009 funding priorities focus on behavioral health, healthy living and prevention, among other topics.  They’re looking for programs that have “potential opportunity for focus in the broader community, the delivery system and the worksite setting.â€Â  Their funding is divided into two cycles; if your program falls into the behavioral health or healthy living category, you must send a letter of intent (a full proposal is due later) by March 27—I know, not a lot of time.  Send the letter of intent by May 22 if your program falls under one of their other priority areas.
  • The National Gardening Association sponsors several grant and funding programs, including the Health Sprouts Awards.  School gardens can be part of the solution to the diet- and exercise-related challenges children face.  Schools can also use the gardening experience to create programs that focus on nutrition and hunger issues.  The Association will award gift certificates up to $500 to purchase gardening supplies so schools can begin their own garden.  Apply on line by October 17. 

      

At this point, it’s probably not really a surprise when we hear that rural residents are generally in poor health compared to urban and suburban residents.  It seems as though the studies illustrating this are piling up.  Besides obesity, blood pressure and other indicators of poor health being higher in rural communities, we can now add diabetes.  A study last year found the incidence of diagnosed diabetes among urban/suburban adults is 8.2% of the population; in rural areas it’s 9.7%.  Health workers blame the difference on “a lack of education, increasingly sedentary lifestyles and poor eating habits.â€


Another report last year found that rural obese women were more successful in keeping off weight if they had counseling sessions, rather than relying on printed educational material.  Of course, women in rural areas can have a hard time getting to counseling sessions; the study found that phone counseling was as effective as in-person counseling in helping them achieve weight goals and has the added benefit of being cheaper than in-person sessions.

 

And here’s an idea for your community; the small town of Fossil, OR is in the middle of their own version of the Biggest Loser.  20% of the residents are participating and have lost over 600 pounds.  Read more about the program and listen to a radio report on the National Public Radio website.

March 25, 2009 · KJacobson · No Comments
Tags: , , ,  Â· Posted in: Grant Advice, Reports and Studies

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