The United Way of Henry County and Martinsville looks to hire a Spanish-speaking Community Health Worker (CHW) to address health disparities within the Hispanic/Latino/Latinx communities in Martinsville-Henry County. The Harvest Foundation funded a $25,000 grant to support this new position.
“Community Health Workers are frontline agents of change who are culturally and community informed,” said India Brown, program officer at The Harvest Foundation. “Their work is especially important when serving communities of color, like the Hispanic/Latinx community, that are often underserved. We hope our investment will increase awareness and access to community services within the Hispanic/Latinx community.”
Community Health Workers engage the entire community to improve the overall public health of the region. This position will focus primarily on building relationships with the Spanish-speaking community to foster trusting relationships with individuals who are not connected to local medical resources. They also will share information about services that address health challenges and directly connect clients to medical services offered by local providers.
“We are incredibly appreciative of the Harvest Foundation, the Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia, and United Way Worldwide for investing in this project,” said Philip Wenkstern, executive director of The United Way of Henry County and Martinsville. “The United Way fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every individual throughout Martinsville and Henry County. This project will enable us to strengthen connections with a long-underserved segment of our community.”
United Way will receive technical assistance from The Penn Center for Community Health Workers. The center administers the IMPaCT Model, a standardized, scalable program that utilizes evidence-based research and the latest technology so organizations can successfully staff and manage CHW programs at scale. Wenkstern added that the provided technical assistance ensures United Way will have the resources needed to improve strategies that directly support improved health, develop measurement systems that capture progress, and build local capacity for development.
The United Way of Henry County and Martinsville supports this grant-funded position with partners at The Harvest Foundation and the Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia – Martinsville, and United Way Worldwide.
To apply or to learn more, visit unitedwayofhcm.org/careers or call (276) 638-3946.
