Elder Denise White, a pastor, was one of the participants. The class was her idea. She and the church know that the West Side’s health needs are far-ranging.
“The West Virginian population tends to be at the lower levels of all the health indexes across the board,” she said.
The state ranks
Across West Virginia, faith-based organizations are filling needs in their communities. Beyond spiritual guidance, places of worship can offer their members a sense of community, and resources like food and clothing.
Elder White says her place of worship gives out food baskets regularly, serving hundreds of people at a time. With the coronavirus pandemic, the church found itself hosting free COVID-19 testing. It also streamed a Facebook video of their leading pastor, Bishop Robert Haley III, getting a coronavirus vaccine earlier this year, to encourage others to do the same.
The sessions went online during the 2020 global pandemic and have continued as a way to bring new opportunities for people in rural parts of the state and region.
“I think that it does reach people that would normally not be able to be in seat,” said CRCH program associate Misty Boggs. “Virtual is great. We’ve got people from Virginia adding to the workshop.”
The (CRCH) has been offering self pain management classes since 2014.
“Opioids is usually the story when you re talking about West Virginia and you re talking about chronic pain,” said Julian Levine, director of community engagement and outreach. “We need all the techniques and non-pharmacological things we can do to give folks more ways to deal with whatever their chronic pain is about. And it s never only physical or only emotional.”
Tamara Keith
The Biden administration is moving into a new phase of its campaign to vaccinate as many Americans as possible for the coronavirus, one where the government may not always be the best messenger to persuade people to get their shot.
So it s working to bring together hundreds of local and national groups into something it calls the COVID-19 Community Corps, enlisting people to help their friends, family and neighbors make appointments and get access to vaccines.
On a recent evening, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy led a Zoom call for people who have signed up to help. I just want to remind you again, which we will keep doing again and again and again, that this is not just a government-driven effort, he said.
The Biden administration is moving into a new phase of its campaign to vaccinate as many Americans as possible for the coronavirus, one where the government may not always be the best messenger to persuade people to get their shot.
So it s working to bring together hundreds of local and national groups into something it calls the COVID-19 Community Corps, enlisting people to help their friends, family and neighbors make appointments and get access to vaccines.
On a recent evening, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy led a Zoom call for people who have signed up to help. I just want to remind you again, which we will keep doing again and again and again, that this is not just a government-driven effort, he said.