Wellness Hub Overview
Background and Objectives
The Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub exists to improve physical health, life expectancy, employment, income, social and emotional well-being, and environmental circumstances of West Side residents.
Key Hub members and partners will provide strong coverage across the eight dimensions of wellness and set up the Hub to be effective with our primary service communities of (but not limited to) Austin, Humboldt Park and Garfield Park.
The overarching vision for the MWWH is that it becomes a catalyst for the forming of a Hub network that provides an array of wellness services across the far West Side that utilized intentional connectivity to drastically raise the impact of community wellness outcomes for all.
Hub Overview
Located six miles west of downtown Chicago, Austin is a community that has historically experienced significant economic decline and disinvestment by the “powers that be”. The community is currently experiencing significant violence, a lack of living-wage employment opportunities, and a lack of meaningful community services. The Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub (MWWH) is bringing programs and partners together addressing the 10 Dimensions of Wellness. Bethel’s philosophy is that BNL doesn’t need to do it all ourselves. By forming relationships and partnerships with successful community-serving organizations, we are more effectively and efficiently bringing needed resources to our target community.
Hub Context
The Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub will provide the bridge for their partners to offer meaningful programming addressing wellness in Austin.
Building on Bethel New Life’s goal to improve wellness, the Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub was founded to fund and build dedicated space for wellness programming.
The Hub is focused on addressing holistic health filling the gap in health disparities and wellness needs faced by West Chicago residents. By implementing the 10 Dimensions of Wellness the broad spectrum of community needs will be addressed in a thoughtful and strategic manner leading to broader community gains in wellness.
The development of the Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub will provide resources and services that improve social connections, which has been shown to reduce crime.
Furthermore, the Wellness Hub’s plans for renovation to improve walkability and access in its direct area has also been shown in various studies to reduce crime.
“… The Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub will bring the focus on holistic health. For medically under-resourced communities, you have to go beyond the medical approach. With a holistic approach, you address eating, exercise, social health and more, and you enhance it by leveraging the interrelated nature of these elements…” -Dr. Mary Nelson, Founder, Bethel New Life
Partner Criteria
The Wellness Hub uses the following framework to determine fit of potential partners:
Mildred Wiley Wellness Hub Compatibility
Nonprofits either exclusively serving Austin, or have a significant presence.
Has an existing relationship with Bethel New Life.
Program Strength
Programs are well regarded with evidence of effectiveness and Impact.
Possess staff and curriculum for programming offered at the Hub.
Organization is financially healthy and able to provide robust programming.
Has the ability to reach into the community and draw community members to the Hub.
MWWH Compatibility
The mission statement of the organization is in alignment with MWWH Dimensions of Wellness.
Partnership offers revenue opportunities for the MWWH through space rental or other avenues.
The program contributes a unique value to the Hub.
The organization has a willingness to apply for and significantly contribute to grant applications.
Partnership Evaluation
The primary metric to be evaluated will be enrollment and participation, ensuring stability and growth for each Hub program or event.
Partners, programs and events that draw new members to engage with the Hub will be considered particularly valuable, especially if those new members engage with additional Hub programming.
Clear, measurable improvement of other captured metrics, such as food / produce distributed to community, educational attainment, household income improvements will serve as a strong future indicator of program success.