Western Idaho Community Action Partnership (WICAP) receives a $600,000 BUILD Health Challenge® award to address ongoing health needs of the Payette community.
Payette, Idaho, May 30, 2023
WICAP is pleased to announce that it has been selected to receive a national BUILD Health Challenge® award. BUILD Payette will receive more than $600,000 in funding and additional resources over the next three years to support the collaborative work of WICAP, Southwest District Health, Saint Alphonsus and St. Luke’s Health Systems, Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health, and the Western Idaho Community Health Collaborative, with additional funding and programmatic support from Intermountain Health System, LEAP Housing Solutions, the City of Payette, and many others. Together, these organizations will work to address health disparities. Payette, Idaho is honored to be selected as one of 13 communities across the country to receive recognition, funding, and support from BUILD in the 2023-2026 term. As Payette is by far the smallest and most rural community to ever receive this prestigious funding and support, the community will serve as a model for addressing key health concerns around housing, behavioral health, and access to healthcare for other communities in Idaho and across the nation.
BUILD Payette addresses health disparities such as equitable access to care and preventative services with a focus on mental health and chronic disease. The goal is to increase access to, and utilization of, community health resources, service, and infrastructure. To accomplish this, BUILD Payette will engage the Payette County Health Action Team (PCHAT) and other community partners in the planning process to address social and racial inequities, health disparities, and expand access to affordable housing.
Here’s what some local community partners have to say about this exciting opportunity:
“WICAP is excited to work alongside our community, partners and stakeholders as we move forward in addressing community health at the local level through the BUILD Health Challenge. Making positive change in our communities through prevention, intervention, and building access to community resources is an amazing opportunity for us to assist in helping improve both individual and community health. We look forward to applying innovative and evidence-based strategies toward this goal.” Connie Kreps, Interim Executive Director, WICAP
“The BUILD Health Challenge will bring national resources and opportunities to the City of Payette that wouldn’t have been available to us otherwise to lift the voices of the residents in co-designing the housing and services that they want and need most. Saint Alphonsus is proud to participate in and lend support to long-lasting initiatives that will improve the health and well-being of Payette well into the future.” Rebecca Lemmons, Director of Community Health & Well-Being, Saint Alphonsus Health System.
“St. Luke’s is thrilled to support BUILD Payette in bringing much needed services to the community through the BUILD Health Challenge. The resources provided by the grant and partnerships committed to the initiative, with the engagement of the Payette community, have the ability to bring sustainable and truly impactful assets to our community.” Angie Gribble, Senior Director Community Health and Engagement, St. Luke’s Health System.
“Southwest District Health and the Payette County Health Action Team are honored to be partners in this incredible project. BUILD Payette will amplify the existing resources in the community and draw upon the expertise of residents to identify pressing health needs with innovative solutions to address them. Through this collaboration, BUILD Payette will create a healthier Southwest Idaho.” Emily Straubhar, Community Resiliency Program Manager, SWDH
“As the Mayor of Payette, I am grateful that WICAP and the BUILD Health Challenge award was given to help our residents of the great City of Payette. This will bring additional health and preventative care coverage that we could not have funded on our own. When we can benefit our citizens by meeting their health needs, we are helping our whole community at the same time.” Mayor Craig Jensen, City of Payette
The BUILD Health Challenge is a unique national program focusing on Bold, Upstream, Integrated, Local, and Data-Driven projects that can improve community health. The BUILD Health Challenge award provides funding, capacity building support, and participation in a national learning network to enhance our local collaborative partnership and address our community’s most pressing health challenges. Special thanks to the BUILD Health Challenge for its support of this initiative
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About the BUILD Health Challenge
The BUILD Health Challenge is made possible with the support of: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation, Blue Shield of California Foundation, de Beaumont Foundation, Episcopal Health Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health, Methodist Healthcare Ministries, Missouri Foundation for Health, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Trinity Health, Vitalyst Health Foundation, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation.