Healthier Lyon County

Beginning in 2014 with a grant from Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Healthier Lyon County (HLC) has strived to promote healthy lifestyle habits in Lyon County.  After merging with Healthier Community Alliance in 2016, Healthier Lyon County now boasts a coalition of over 75 organizations and 140 people who work to improve the lives of Lyon County residents.

Mission Statement:

Our mission is to encourage initiatives, policies, and resources to improve health in Lyon County.

Vision Statement:

Fostering a vibrant community by championing equitable access to comprehensive health, nutritious food options, opportunities for physical activity, robust infrastructure supporting wellness, and policies that prioritize the health and well-being of all residents, paving the way for a healthier, happier future.

The mission of the Chronic Disease Risk Reduction (CDRR) community grant program is to address chronic disease risk reduction.  A chronic disease is a disease or condition that lasts for 3 months or longer and may get worse over time. The most common types of chronic disease are cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and arthritis.

For the State Fiscal Year 2025 CDRR grant proposal to Kansas Department of Health & Environment, Healthier Lyon County is committed to make progress toward one or more of these goal areas:

• Prevent initiation of commercial tobacco use among young people;

• Eliminate nonsmokers' exposure to secondhand smoke; and,

• Increase physical activity and community resiliency

The Kansas Food Action Network has launched the Food Secure Communities Initiative, aimed at eliminating hunger in Kansas by tackling policy, systems, and environmental barriers to food security. This initiative will foster a community of practice, allowing coalitions to exchange ideas, experiences, and best practices for reducing food insecurity. Healthier Lyon County is among the eight health and wellness coalitions chosen as inaugural members of the initiative. Each coalition will receive $55,000 annually for three years, along with opportunities for peer networking and strategic support.

This initiative is made possible through the generous support of the Kansas Health Foundation and the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.

Pathways started in 2016 with eight communities and expanded to 16 communities in 2017. In 2020, the Pathways initiative started a second phase of work with a total of 24 communities – 12 new and 12 returning communities from across the BCBSKS service area.

Healthier Lyon County was awarded the initial pathways grant in 2017, and phase 2 in 2020. Projects we focused on were:

• Rural Farmers Markets
• Safe Routes to Healthy Food
• Bike Share
• Tobacco Free Playgrounds
• Food Policy Council
• Healthy Restaurants
• Food Retail in Food Deserts
• Walk With a Doc
• Healthy Grocery Stores
• Kansas State Department of Education Model Wellness Policy Implementation in local schools
• Healthier Hospitals & Healthcare
• Park Crawl
• Interactive Community Health Fest
• Lyon County Fairgrounds Trail
• Vaping prevention