The HEALTH Coalition of Columbia County met Wednesday at noon in the boardroom of Magnolia Regional Medical Center (MRMC). The primary goal of the meeting was to elect new officers and make plans for the future of the organization.
Karen Weido, chairperson, said the group’s available funds stand at $1,951.86. No plans are in the works at present to focus on fundraisers. In order to apply for grants, the group must consistently submit minutes from meetings, which made it imperative to elect a secretary.
“Last month we started talking about the bylaws,” Weido said, “and we threw around some things and said we’d come back and try to finalize those.”
The purpose of HEALTH, as read from the bylaws, is Helping Everyone Achieve Long Term Health in Columbia County. The mission of HEALTH is “to seek to enhance the quality of life and promote longterm health and safety for the residents of Columbia County through educational programs and use of community resources.” The vision is also helping everyone achieve long term health in Columbia County. Those in attendance at the meeting agreed that the purpose, mission, and vision should remain as written.
“One thing we did talk about was how we wanted to determine who the coalition members were,” Weido said. “We’re trying to remain a dues-free organization.” The group agreed that membership would be open to those who are interested in joining and fill out a short application for consideration. Member DeAnna O’Malley, Arkansas Department of Health Hometown Health Improvement Team Leader, said she had a membership application from an organization in Miller County that would work for HEALTH with a few changes.
Member Phyllis Disotell suggested that name tags the group used years ago could be helpful in gaining back members who have not attended recently. “We might want to go back through here and contact some who used to be members. There’s a lot of names in here,” she said.
Weido read from the bylaws the responsibilities for each officer. After discussion and voting, HEALTH’s new officers are Chairperson Karen Weido of MRMC; Vice Chairperson Renece Ellis of Central Arkansas Development Council; Secretary Anna Todd of Department of Human Services; Treasurer Phyllis Disotell, Columbia County Circuit Clerk; and Historian Lynne Kemp of Kindred at Home. The group also voted to purchase a small digital recorder to facilitate reporting minutes from meetings.
While lunch has been provided for some HEALTH meetings in the past, that will no longer be the case. “One of the reasons we moved over here is so we have easy access to the hospital cafeteria, or you can bring your lunch,” Weido said. She encouraged members to think of speakers for upcoming meetings.
“You don’t have to know right now what topic you want to have a speaker for, but if you would be willing to find a speaker for any particular month, please sign up,” Weido said. February’s speaker will be Kevin Russell, who will present information on the pros and cons of medical marijuana.
The next meeting for HEALTH in Columbia County will be in the boardroom of MRMC at noon January 3, 2018.