commimpact - Flipbook - Page 7
Mental Health . Healthcare Access . Food Security
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Washington State is in the midst of a youth mental health crisis
and currently faces a severe shortage of counselors. However,
organizations such as the Center for Human Services (CHS ) are
working to ensure students in our region can access the mental
health supports they need. Today, CHS provides school-based
counseling services at 14 schools in the Edmonds School
District, engaging students on campus to reduce barriers related
to transportation, time away from school/work, lack of healthcare
insurance, and more. CHS is able to provide rapid response to
students in need, typically scheduling the first appointment
within three days of a school’s referral. In 2022, 445 Edmonds
School District students received mental health counseling
through this CHS program.
Since 2005, Millennia Ministries has been working to support
our community’s unhoused neighbors by providing advocacy,
housing, and programs that reduce barriers to accessing
nutritious food. The organization was founded by members of
the Black community and works to empower BIPOC individuals,
single parent families, immigrants, and others. With the support
of Verdant Health, Millennia has expanded its Mobile Millennia
grocery delivery program to reach more residents living in richly
diverse areas of Lynnwood, Edmonds, and Mountlake Terrace.
This program distributes healthy food options to families, the
elderly, and anyone with barriers to accessing groceries. In 2022,
Millennia Ministries served more than 5,200 households.
Edmonds Food Bank (EFB) is committed to ensuring that every
member of our community has access to healthy, culturally
appropriate foods. In 2022, EFB leveraged Verdant funding to
partner with the Latino Educational Training Institute (LETI), the
Korean Community Service Center (KCSC). These partnerships
allowed EFB to provide pop-up food banks at partner locations,
expanding the number of food distribution sites for Latinx,
Korean, Ukrainian, and West African families. Last year, the
number of community members reached at both the LETI and
KCSC grew by 50 families per month at LETI and KCSC growing
by 125 families per month. These sites provided culturally-specific foods as well as cooking instruction and nutritional
information. Together in 2022, LETI, KCSC, and EFB served 7,000
families, breaking down barriers related to transportation, and
languages spoken.