The Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant program continues to be fruitful for Emporia, Lyon County and nearby counties.
Healthier Lyon County is into its second phase of the grant, with the original award of $500,000 from 2017-2020 and a second, $400,000 round of funding starting in 2020. Healthier Lyon County grant manager Daphne Mertens says one of the recent beneficiaries was Abundant Harvest, which received $20,000 to add a pickup truck.
Grant funds can be used in several categories, including healthy food, infrastructure, physical activity, tobacco cessation and other pathways. On food reclamation, Healthier Lyon County representative Teresa Briggs, also a member of the Lyon County Food and Farm Council, says food reclamation is becoming a bigger focus locally and projects like the Abundant Harvest grant help to tdraw positive attention, both to the general effort and the state’s Good Samaritan laws, which reduce liability for food donors.
Healthier Lyon County is also involved in a Supporting Wellness at Pantries, or SWAP, program at local food pantries. Mertens says people who use food pantries have a double burden of food insecurity and chronic disease, so the goal is to get healthier food into the pantries versus the standard fare of high-sodium pre-packaged food.
The goal is not to eliminate the so-called red items, but to bring in more green items. ECKAN, the John and Frances Ice Food Pantry at Sacred Heart and Cork’s Cupboard at Emporia State University are currently involved.
For more information about the Pathways to a Healthy Kansas grant program, go to Healthier Lyon County’s Facebook page.
