Lorenzo Sosa
By Rose Chavez | Food System/Food Equity Coalition
The Archuleta County Nutrition Security and Health Equity Assessment, which kicked off in December 2021, is continuing its ongoing work to engage the community through a Community Learning and Leadership Circle (CLLC) that meets on a weekly basis.
The CLLC is made up of a group of diverse Archuleta County community members who are committed to contributing to the design of the assessment during this first phase of the project, which will conclude at the end of June.
CLLC members engage in learning through module presentations facilitated by Healthy Archuleta and partner organizations about the concepts of nutrition security and health equity.
On a weekly basis, the CLLC members help inform the assessment as it relates to 1) primary/preventive health care access and utilization (coverage, timeliness, workforce, and services) and 2) bolstering our community-based food system (food production, food transformation, marketing and distribution, getting and preparing food, eating nutritious foods, food safety, food waste prevention and resource recovery).
A community-based participatory approach will be used to capture people’s voices and lived experiences related to access to food and primary/preventive health care in Archuleta County. Additionally, both food and health care organizations will have the opportunity to share information as it relates to primary/preventative health care and food efforts.
Healthy Archuleta is sharing individual profiles of CLLC community members who are serving their community in this capacity. This week, we are featuring CLLC member and community leader Lorenzo Sosa:
1. Health is the new wealth. What does that mean for you and your family’s health in Archuleta County? “Health is an investment that you simply can not put a price on. My wellbeing and the health of my family is very important. Long-term health while maintaining the best and highest quality of life must not be limited to financial resources.”
2. What are your ties to Archuleta County? “Looking for work and sanction, my family moved here and we have called this beauty county home for over two decades. Growing up in such a unique location with such a strong sense of true community has been an experience that can not be matched anywhere.”
3. What do you see as your role on the CLLC for the Nutrition Security and Health Equity Assessment? “I am honored to join the CLLC as I value the efforts of the group and I see my role as a facilitator in communication between the group and the community, a member of the community working to improve the community.”
4. What is your vision for a Healthy Archuleta? “My vision for a Healthy Archuleta would be where there is no sacrifice when choosing healthy options due to cost, availability or any other factor. This includes the ingredients we use, the healthcare available to us and our daily activity choices.”
5. What do you think is critical about the dynamics of learning and leading on the CLLC for this assessment? “It is critical to the group and its dynamics to keep an open mind when it comes to facing difficulties and challenges in our efforts to make a Healthy Archuleta accessible to everyone.”
For more information, please contact us at fsfearchuleta@gmail.org or (401) 371-3227. To donate to support the work of Healthy Archuleta, doing business as the FSFE — Food Coalition, please visit our website, https://www.foodcoalition4archuleta.org/donate.html.
