ENGAGE UC HEA LTH COMMUN ITY R EL ATIONS
IN THIS ISSUE: Community Highlights
ABOVE: Dena Fisher and Bre Shisso of the UC Health Women’s Center help deliver gifts to Rockdale Academy as part of UC Health Gives Back for the Holidays food and gift drive.
First Ladies Family Health Day The Avondale Community Council and Avondale’s Avenue District Block Club Ninth Annual Thanksgiving Food Drive UC Health Gives Back for the Holidays Holiday Gift Drive Welcome New Team Member: Tamara Lang
FOURTH QUARTER 2019
MESSAGE FROM UC HEALTH VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS As 2019 came to a close, our team at UC Health took a moment to reflect on the successes and lessons learned while engaging with the community over the past year. We’re privileged to have the opportunity to interact with and learn from those living and working in the neighborhoods surrounding our facilities and beyond. We’re also excited as we look forward to 2020 and welcome Tamara Lang, our new director of Community Relations, to the team. Over the past year, we celebrated with the community and opened the doors of the new Ambrose H. Clement Health Center with the Cincinnati Health Department in the heart of the Avondale community. We are proud to have significantly increased our spend with women- and minority-owned vendors in professional services and companies within the area. As a result, UC Health has been recognized throughout the region as a leader in supplier diversity and inclusion. Our providers touched the lives of thousands of Greater Cincinnati residents through health screenings at various community events. Clinical and nonclinical employees got the chance to impact communities throughout the region as a part of our growing Volunteer Ambassador Program. In 2019, our volunteers gave their time at community wellness events, beautification projects, local school events and much more. Just this year, we reached 1,000 Volunteer Ambassadors! We know that 2020 will bring with it new opportunities as we lean in to our commitment to improving the physical and economic health of the communities we serve. With the continued support from our neighbors, the UC Health family looks to build on relationships and form new lasting partnerships in our ongoing journey toward advancing healing and reducing suffering. Sincerely,
Christie Kuhns, Esq.
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COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS HARTWELL COMMUNITY CLEANUP — OCT. 5 UC Health volunteers joined the Hartwell Improvement Association on Oct. 5 to assist in making the Hartwell community cleanup a success. Volunteers helped with weeding and edging flowerbeds, spreading mulch and collecting litter to help beautify the neighborhood, creating safer, cleaner and more beautiful spaces. The Hartwell Improvement Association is Hartwell’s neighborhood council. The council informs residents of issues important to the neighborhood and works to strengthen the residential and business community of Hartwell through special development projects, beautification efforts and community-wide events.
TRICK OR TREAT WITH HARTWELL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL — OCT. 31 On Oct. 31, Hartwell Elementary celebrated Halloween with volunteers from Daniel the Drake Center for Post-Acute Care and Bridgeway Pointe Assisted Living. Students in grades 1–3 paraded through the gymnasium to show off their costumes and trick or treat. UC Health Volunteer Ambassadors passed out candy and helped create a festive Halloween atmosphere for the students. In addition, volunteers judged festive pumpkins that the students decorated for the occasion.
SU CASA HEALTH AND WELLNESS FAIRS Throughout the year, Su Casa hosts monthly Health and Wellness Fairs at San Carlos Catholic Church to provide health screenings and wellness information specifically for the Latino community. UC Health Volunteer Ambassadors lend their time on a regular basis, providing screenings and assisting in the food pantry. The Su Casa Hispanic Center, a program of Catholic Charities of Southwestern Ohio, promotes healthy lifestyles by bringing healthcare providers together to provide free screenings to the Hispanic/Latino immigrant community. All Health and Wellness Days take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at San Carlos Catholic Church, 7036 Fairpark Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45216. 2020 schedule forthcoming.
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FIRST LADIES FAMILY HEALTH DAY “The churches are a safe haven for many in the community. It’s a key location to go and reach out to people in the community,” Cranley said. “It’s a great way of building connections and meeting people where they are.”
Since its inception, UC Health has proudly collaborated with the First Ladies of Health on the Family Health Day initiative. On Sunday, Oct. 13, UC Health and the First Ladies were back at it again for the Fifth Annual Family Health Day. Along with over 50 healthcare partners, UC Health provided essential health screenings and information to members of the community in the comfort of their neighborhood churches and community centers.
For the 2019 event, UC Health provided cancer screenings at seven locations. Our healthcare professionals offered comprehensive prostate, breast, lung, and head and neck cancer screenings and encouraged participants to follow up with a physician if the screening indicated they might be at risk.
Led by Cincinnati’s First Lady Dena Cranley, and New Jerusalem Baptist Church First Lady Barbara Lynch, the First Ladies for Health Project (FLFH) is a volunteer group that leverages the leadership of the first ladies (pastors’ wives) and other representatives of churches to help their parishioners and community members make informed decisions about their health.
“At UC Health, we know early detection is the best defense again cancer,” said Kelly Hummel, events program director at the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center. “This is a great way to bring healthcare services outside of the hospital where people can walk right up to our tables, meet with our doctors and nurses — just like a doctor’s appointment — and make a follow-up appointment right there. We’re looking forward to continuing to participate in this great community event.”
Family Health Day has grown to serve hundreds of adults and children at 12 locations across the city of Cincinnati.
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AVONDALE NINTH ANNUAL THANKSGIVING FOOD DRIVE
On Saturday, Nov. 23, the Avondale Community Council and Avondale’s Avenue District Block Club hosted their Ninth Annual Thanksgiving Food Drive at the First Unitarian Church. This year’s annual Thanksgiving Food Drive achieved the lofty goal of feeding 1,000 families in the community, as volunteers from organizations across the city joined forces to assemble and distribute Thanksgiving meal bags. UC Health joined the effort as a premier sponsor alongside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden and Kroger, and together the team provided food and turkeys in reusable shopping bags to those in need. Recipients of the drive included: Rockdale Academy; South Avondale Elementary; Phoenix Community Learning Center; Taft Elementary; SO-ACT Seniors; Avondale’s Avenue District Block Club residents; New Beginnings Church of the Living God; Zion Baptist Church; First Unitarian Church; Colonial Village residents; TCB CHOICE residents; UMADAOP families and the Avondale community at large. The event has grown significantly over the course of nine years from its humble beginnings as a small group of residents looking out for those in need.
“A huge thanks for the teamwork of all the volunteers. We are grateful to all those who continue to invest in Avondale and our residents.”
“It all started with our Block Club group when we personally brought food bags to seven families, nine years ago,” said Sheila Holmes Howard, president and secretary of Avondale’s Avenue District Block Club.
The food bags included dressing, gravy, green beans, corn, cranberry sauce and more, plus an 8–10 pound turkey! All food was generously donated by Kroger.
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UC HEALTH GIVES BACK FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Throughout the month of December, employees across UC Health volunteered their time and talents to families and organizations within the Cincinnati community. This year’s partners included the Caring Community Collaborative (C3), the Freestore Foodbank, and Hartwell School. The month of giving kicked off with the Caring Community Collaboratives Annual Empty Bowls event on Dec. 7 at Liberty Center. Community members attending this event selected a handcrafted bowl made by local artists to take home and enjoyed fresh soup specially prepared by local chefs and restaurants. Proceeds from the event support Reach Out Lakota, the Faith Alliance Summer Lunch Program and ongoing efforts to provide food and clothing to families in need in the local community. Volunteers from UC Health joined the initiative to help set up, serve soup and spread awareness of the event. One-hundred percent of proceeds went to charity.
“Give Back Days are a good way to give back, relax and have fun with our neighbors,” said Dan Maxwell, manager of Community Relations at UC Health. “We are looking forward to next spring when we will host our next Give Back Day and are excited to hear from the community about opportunities where our volunteers can make a difference.”
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Volunteers continued their generous giving at the Hartwell School Holiday Breakfast on Dec. 14. Local families kicked off the holiday season by sharing a meal together at the school. The event featured locally made crafts, performances by students and an appearance by Santa and Mrs. Claus. Volunteers joined in the festivities and served breakfast to the attendees. The month of giving concluded with the Freestore Foodbank’s food box distribution on Dec. 19 and 20. Volunteers joined the effort to distribute Christmas Holiday Food Boxes to over 5,000 households in our community. Give Back Days are an ongoing part of UC Health’s Volunteer Ambassador Program, with events taking place throughout the year. Community members can submit ideas for future opportunities to volunteer to communityrelations@uchealth.com.
HOLIDAY GIFT DRIVE This holiday season, teams across UC Health joined together to provide assistance to families in need across the region. Departments generously sponsored families at the University of Cincinnati’s Arlitt Child Development Center and Rockdale Elementary, collaborated on a systemwide winter coat drive, collected personal care and hygiene products, and purchased food for the Freestore Foodbank.
Through partnership with the Freestore Foodbank, employees donated canned goods through the month of December. In total, 654 pounds of nonperishable food were collected and donated to the food bank. The Freestore Foodbank provides 27 million meals annually to hungry neighbors in Greater Cincinnati. “We are grateful to all the employees who went above and beyond during this giving season,” said Terrane Fairbanks, employee engagement coordinator at UC Health. “We are so glad to be able to help those in need during the holidays.”
Students at the schools prepared holiday wish lists that were distributed to teams across the health system. Each team collected gifts and created a holiday food box for each family and had the opportunity to deliver the gifts personally to each school. Over 30 students and their family members were sponsored for the holidays.
UC Health also collected new winter coats, hats and gloves at each UC Health location for donation to local schools and organizations that serve children. Hygiene and personal care products were collected for Hartwell School’s hygiene pantry.
“It is a great blessing for our kids this Christmas,” said the parent of one child. “We are so appreciative of those who are willing to give.”
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LOOKING AHEAD:
Welcome New Team Member: Tamara Lang, Director, Community Relations The UC Health Community Relations Department is excited to welcome Tamara Lang to the team as director of Community Relations. Lang previously served in many notable positions throughout her 20-year career at the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber. Most recently, she served as Women Excel Programs Leader, responsible for the chamber’s platform of leadership development programs for women in business. She brings an extensive program and executive leadership background with her to the role, as well as a passion for serving her community. Lang holds a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Kentucky University, a bachelor’s degree in political science and policy studies from Syracuse University and is a proud Walnut Hills High School alumna.Tamara and her husband Maurice reside in Cincinnati with their daughters, Torrance and Ella and two cats, Beijing and Cognac.
MEET THE TEAM Christie Kuhns, Esq. Chief of Staff, Vice President of Operations & Community Relations 513-585-8124 christie.kuhns@uchealth.com
Tamara Lang
Director, Community Relations 513-585-7495 tamara.lang@uchealth.com
IN SCIENCE LIVES HOPE.
Dan Maxwell
Manager, Community Relations 513-585-8128 daniel.maxwell@uchealth.com