 |
||||||
    |
||||||
|
County
Factsheets Now Available
The Georgia Rural Health Association invited FamilyConnection-Valdosta State intern Tonya Cecil (pictured right) to present an abstract she submitted at its annual conference in Athens in September. The abstract related how Family Connection brings community partners together to address rural health needs and highlighted Turner County's highly successful dental health clinic. The Rural Smiles Clinic provides dental services one day a week through volunteer dentists. The Turner County collaborative was the driving force in getting the clinic established with key leaders coordinator Lisa Kingry and Rural Health Network director Brenda Lee. After more than a year of planning, the clinic opened on March 24, 2006. The collaborative called on local businesses to donate space for the clinic and recruited 25 volunteer dentists to provide free services. Area dentists also donated three dental operatories and are recruiting more dentists to open the clinic additional days. A federal grant obtained through the collaborative's efforts provided a full-time dental hygienist and an administrative staff member. The hygienist assists in the clinic on Fridays and works in the community four days a week. Beyond Turner County, the clinic also serves Irwin, Ben Hill, Wilcox, and Worth counties. Income-eligible residents of all ages may participate. In its first year of operation, the clinic saw approximately 300 people and performed more than 800 procedures. Ninety-four percent of patients seen were adults.
The Randolph County Family Connection and its subcommittees, Prevent Child Abuse Randolph and the Randolph County R.E.A.D.S. Certified Literate Community Program, co-sponsored their First Family Connection Day, "Building Bridges for a Stronger Community," at the Iris Gardens in Cuthbert in the fall. Board Chair Dean Nelson presented the occasion and Tom Mock, City of Cuthbert mayor pro-tem, extended greetings and read a proclamation declaring Family Connection Day. Billie Izard, executive director of the Ga. Dept. Technical and Adult Education Certified Literate Community Program, and Dave Earnest, a representative of Prevent Child Abuse Georgia, also gave greetings. A crowd of 300 gathered in the Iris Garden to enjoy the festivities that included plenty of food, fun games, activities for youth of all ages, and a a BBQ Bash Competition. The Piney Grove Missionary Baptist Church's Piney Grove Cook'n Crew took first-place honors. Information booths representing numerous agencies locally, regionally, and statewide, included Wellcare, Albany State University, Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr.'s Office, Albany Technical College, Department of Family and Children Serves, WIA, GA Department of Labor, and the Randolph County Library. Local churches participated in the Youth Chorus Performance, and the day culminated with a performance by the Randolph Clay High School Marching Band. Volunteers were essential to the success of the event, including Andrew College's AndrewServes Students also volunteered throughout the day. "I'm grateful for the planning committee, which worked so diligently to make the event happen," said Kuanita E. Murphy, executive director of the Randolph County Family Connection, Inc. "I know I couldn't have pulled it off without the committee. I appreciated every committee member's time, talent, commitment, and resources to make the day a grand success. I also thank the community for supporting the event." A very special thanks to sponsors who made Family Connection Day possible: Bubba Graphic, Buffalo Rock, City of Cuthbert, Coca-Cola, M&M Mars, Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, Piggly Wiggly, Randolph County Board of Education, the Starlight Social Club, and the Stonehouse Snack Shop. The
Randolph County Family Connection's mission reflects Georgia Family
Connection's mission to engage communities for positive outcomes:
Healthy Children, Children Succeeding in School, Children Ready
for School, Strong Families, and Self-Sufficient Families. For additional information, contact Kuanita Murphy at 229-732-3796 or rcfc@alltel.net, or visit www.rcfc.us.
|
|||||
|
|
||||||
