Public Health Award Winners Announced

MEDIA CONTACTChris Burns, Public Information Officer, Saint Paul – Ramsey County Public Health, 651.266.2537.

County Public Health Award Winners Announced

Four Awardees to be Recognized at April 7 County Board Meeting

Saint Paul, MN. (April 6) — One individual and three groups will receive 2015 Ramsey County Public Health Awards at the April 7 meeting of the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners, The awardees will be honored for their exceptional contributions to improving the health of individuals, families and communities in the county.

The 2015 Ramsey County Public Health Award winners are:

  •  Pa Nyia Vang for her work in the Hmong community providing education and support to families with children who have special health care needs. 
  • Urban Roots for the nonprofit’s work cultivating youth leaders to connect with community members to grow fresh produce, promote organic practices, and the cooking and eating of healthy foods.
  • Saint Paul Public Housing Agency's health improvement team for its work to address health disparities by fostering a culture of health through multiple initiatives at its 20 residential communities. 
  • The Twin Cities Mobile Market, a program of the Wilder Foundation, under the leadership of Leah Driscoll for their work to improve health outcomes by bringing healthy, affordable food to underserved neighborhoods.

(See background information below for more about the award winners.)

 The Ramsey County Public Health Awards are sponsored by Saint Paul – Ramsey County Public Health. Nominations were submitted by the public earlier this year. Award recipients were selected for their leadership, advocacy, collaboration and work to improve community health.

 This is the inaugural year of the awards program. “The work of this first group of award winners is impressive,” said Ramsey County Board Chair Jim McDonough. “Our county is fortunate to have such dedicated individuals and groups focused on improving the health of people and the environment in Ramsey County.”

  “The collaboration, leadership and passion these winners display in their efforts to improve our community’s health is inspiring,” said Commissioner Janice Rettman, Chair of the Ramsey County Health Services Committee. “Working at the grassroots level, together with multiple community partners, these individuals and groups are creating smart solutions that fit the individual needs of their neighborhoods.”  

 The public health award presentation coincides with National Public Health Week which this year emphasizes the importance of a multi-sector approach to improving the health in local communities. “One of our goals in developing these awards was to highlight the fact that the work to improve community health isn’t just being done by public health and the health care system alone,” said Marina McManus, Director of Saint Paul – Ramsey County Public Health. “We want to recognize the innovative work being done by many individuals and groups to reduce health disparities and improve the health status of the community.”

 Nominations for the 2016 Ramsey County Public Health Awards will be accepted starting in January of next year. More information on the awards including nomination forms are available at http://www.co.ramsey.mn.us/ph/au/rc_public_health_awards.htm

Background on 2015 Ramsey County Public Health Award Winners

 Pa Nyia Vang – Pa Nyia Vang is a Parent Support Navigator with Family Voices of Minnesota where she focuses on providing assistance in the Hmong community. As a parent with a daughter who has acute chronic special health care needs, she understands the complications of raising a child with special health care needs, as well as how to navigate Hmong culture, traditions, beliefs and stereotypes. Through Family Voices of Minnesota, she conducts monthly meetings at Gillette Children Specialty Healthcare where she provides support, and connects parents to resources and assistance available both inside and outside the hospital.

 Pa Nyia has also provided leadership to many community groups including developing a support group for Hmong families in collaboration with the ARC of the Greater Twin Cities and serving on the Saint Paul Public School’s Special Education Advisory Council. She also serves on the Minnesota Department of Health’s Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Stakeholder Advisory Team. She has shared her knowledge as a speaker at multiple conferences over the last two years organized by Saint Paul Public Schools, the Minnesota Department of Health, local public health nurses, and the Hmong Health Care Professionals Coalition.

 Urban Roots – Youth at the nonprofit Urban Roots have taught thousands of community members the skills they need to improve their own health, as well as working on projects that help improve the health of the broader community. They attend community events to demonstrate how to plant vegetable seeds, pass out samples of healthy recipes or lead activities that explain the importance of eating healthy food. The youth serve as role models for the younger students they mentor at hands-on cooking and gardening classes, and work at their urban gardens.

 Urban Roots youth interns use organic practices to grow produce on six different pieces of urban land. The produce is distributed to community members through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), donated to local food shelves, served at a local church’s “Wellness Night” meals, and used as healthy food samples at various community events. The interns work with numerous schools and community groups to share their knowledge and enthusiasm about healthy eating and cooking.

 Twin Cities Mobile Market – The Twin Cities Mobile Market, a program of the Wilder Foundation, provides store-quality healthy, affordable food at 18 locations in Saint Paul, five days a week via a converted transit bus. The goal of the mobile market is to improve health outcomes by bringing healthy food directly into the areas that need it the most. The stops include schools, senior and public housing in places identified as areas where people may not have access to a full-service grocery.

 The development of the mobile market, under the leadership of Leah Driscoll, has involved many community partners, volunteers, and input from hundreds of community residents. Because the mobile market is the first of its kind in Minnesota, setting up the service required extensive work to ensure it was properly licensed and met the requirements of multiple regulatory agencies. Success of the project is evident in the more than 800 people served in the market’s first month of operation, more than twice the projected estimates. Equally important is the experience of one of the shoppers who shared with Mobile Market that she was now able to eat fruit for the first time in two years.

 Saint Paul Public Housing Agency – The Saint Paul Public Housing Agency began working in 2011 with public housing residents to prevent and reduce chronic disease by focusing on healthy eating, active living and reducing tobacco use. The initiative, supported in part by funding from the Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH) Statewide Health Improvement Program (SHIP) began as a pilot project at five sites, and was expanded to include all 20 SPPHA sites that serve more than 10,000 individuals and families.

A new focus on healthy living is emerging within SPPHA communities as residents, housing and public health staff, and multiple other community partners collaborate on an impressive array of health initiatives. From new gardens installed at residential sites where residents can grow their own fresh produce, gardening and healthy cooking classes, walking groups, strength, balance and yoga classes, to exercise demonstrations and new exercise equipment, SPPHA communities and their partners are working to create new opportunities for healthier living. Active transportation is also a goal with an emphasis on walking and a large biking component with more than 750 bikes donated to youth and families, classes on how to maintain bikes, and bike repair fixit stations that have been installed.

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