The Healthy Community Center is located at 1600 E. Long St. in the former Columbus Metropolitan Library Martin Luther King Jr. branches. A $5.1 million investment in the one-story, 8,900 square foot building helped transform a community landmark into a health and wellness hub.
“Many of the factors that influence the health of Ohioans occur outside the walls of our hospitals and clinics,” said John J. Warner, MD, chief executive officer of Ohio State Wexner Medical Center and executive vice president at Ohio State. “The new Healthy Community Center reflects our ongoing commitment to increasing access to high-quality, highly specialized academic health care, including for our neighbors in the Near East Side community, and will help address pressing needs in creative and collaborative ways to improve the health of the communities that we serve.”
The Healthy Community Center will be a community gathering place for health and wellness activities. Programming will include healthy eating and exercise workshops, health screening events, cancer risk education and other support services. Groups such as Moms2B, a community-based program that helps pregnant people have healthy babies, will meet there.
“We are working closely with community partners to ensure the services we provide truly meet the needs of our neighbors,” said Joshua J. Joseph, MD, medical director, Healthy Community Center. “Ohio State has a vested and growing interest in supporting healthy lifestyle changes so everyone has the opportunity to lead longer, healthier lives.”
The center features a modern teaching kitchen to hold healthy eating classes on topics such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease and obesity. There will be hands-on cooking lessons and food demonstrations tailored to the needs and experience of class participants.
“Creating a healthier community requires us to embrace collaborative solutions,” said Javonte McDonald, director, Healthy Community Center. “At the Healthy Community Center, Ohio State is proud to join hands with community members and organizations to power this space and address the health needs of our neighbors.”
The Healthy Community Center will have a café with indoor and outdoor seating. The space will serve as a business incubator for an independent restaurant owner.
Healthy Community Center partners include the Mid-Ohio Food Collective, Partners Achieving Community Transformation (PACT) and the Growing and Growth Collaborative.
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Media Contact: Serena Smith, Wexner Medical Center Media Relations, [email protected]