On a team call this past month, we looked ahead to June and were amazed at how much was going on. In the event section below, you will see all the incredible events from PHW coming up. We hope you can join us for any or all! It's also a busy month when it comes to national celebrations. June is Pride month, national safety awareness, men's health, and the month designated to celebrate the great outdoors! In this newsletter you will find information on some of these topics, an exciting new grant opportunity and an important request for your support as North Carolina begins to see 750 million dollars come into our state from the opioid settlement funds. We hope you enjoy the content below and would like to wish you all a wonderfully healthy and safe summer. 

June is Men’s Health Month and it is a time to encourage men to care for their health, and learn about the various health issues that impact boys and men, while advocating for their health.  There are many barriers to health that prevent men from getting the medical support that they need. Some of these barriers include familiar silence around health and genetic issues, stigma, finances, and even proximity to accessible healthcare. All of these issues are no different in how they impact men’s health. 

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), when compared to women, men die on average five years earlier and are more likely by 1.5 times to die from respiratory illness, heart disease, and cancer. And men are impacted by mental health too! There is more startling data from the CDC that American men are four times more likely than women to die from suicide.

Studies show that men are not only more reluctant to go to the doctor, but many men do not share with their spouses if a health concern is present. The Cleveland Clinic surveyed men and found that only 40% of participants would go to the doctor if a serious issue was present but skip regular check-ups and exams. This is alarming since preventative and onset care is crucial with heart disease, cancers (such as skin and prostate cancer), and more. 

There are many generational reasons why men face challenges in getting support in their health journey. However, pursuing health does not need to be in isolation. We can work together to highlight the importance of screenings, check-ups, and ongoing care. Our families, churches, communities, workplaces need us to model a new way of being healthy- where we reach out and support one another. June is a wonderful reminder of the importance of men’s health and how we can show up for the men in our lives by caring for their health. 

The stats are staggering. Non-fatal falls experienced by older adults in North Carolina add up to over a billion dollars in healthcare costs annually, with over 150 million dollars of that total being passed onto patients, themselves (source). North Carolina also rates above the national average in fatal falls among older adults (source). 

Thankfully, much can be done to help prevent dire outcomes to both the financial and personal health and well-being of older adults and their families. Here are four steps you and the older adults in your faith communities can take now to help prevent injuries and fatalities from falls.

Fall Prevention Action Steps (adapted from CDC.gov):

1. Speak up.

            a.Speak to your physician or healthcare provider about your personal fall risk and ways you can best prevent falls. This brochure includes a questionnaire that you can share with your healthcare provider to help assess your personal fall risk. 
           b. Discuss your current medications with your pharmacist or healthcare provider to determine whether or not any side effects could contribute to your risk of falls.

2.Keep moving.

         a.Begin or maintain a movement or exercise program to help build and improve your leg strength and balance.
         b. Contact your local area agency on aging or senior center to learn more about exercise classes specific to falls prevention and improving balance. Many of these classes are available free or at minimal cost to participants. 
        c. Check out this PDF with an at-home exercise you can do with just yourself and a sturdy chair to help strengthen muscles in your lower body to improve your balance. 

3.Get an annual eye exam.
        a.Healthy vision improves your ability to detect and avoid fall hazards.
        b. Annual exams help detect any vision changes that may contribute to falls.

4.Make your home and gathering spaces safer.
       a. Be sure to remove any tripping hazards, including clutter around floors and walkways.
       b. This checklist can help you identify and correct many common tripping hazards.

The North Carolina Falls Prevention Coalition has additional resources, online and statewide, to educate and assist you. You can find those resources here. 

We encourage you to share these tips and resources with your faith community and to assist the older adults in your congregation with these steps, as needed. Let’s commit to making our faith communities’ homes and meeting spaces safer from falls. We’re all in this together!

New grant opportunity! Partners in Health and Wholeness is thrilled to announce a new mental health funding opportunity for BIPOC (Black & Brown, Indigenous, People of Color) faith communities.

Thanks to The Duke Endowment, PHW is able to offer this new grant opportunity of $5,000-10,000 for faith communities of color to apply towards COVID-19 mental health efforts. In mid-2022, we plan to award 50 grants in this funding range throughout the entire state. Later this year, there will be an opportunity to apply for a large grant, up to $50,000, to establish or expand a mental health resource hub in your region. This application period for this grant opportunity will be rolling, with quarterly reviews, from May 2022 until May 2023. Learn more here: PHW BIPOC Mental Health Grant Webpage

As you may know, the opioid settlement funds will be released to all 100 NC counties this summer. North Carolina will be receiving $750 million over 18 years according to the Memorandum of Agreement. The majority of the distribution of these funds will be decided by local county commissioners and other county leaders. In an effort to ensure the funds are spent on evidence-based solutions that center the people most impacted, we have created a sign-on letter that will be sent to county commissioners. You can read the letter here.
We know that faith leaders are influential in their communities and your support in this effort is appreciated. If you would like to sign on, please do so here.
If you are not a faith leader and would be willing to share the letter with your faith community leader, that would be much appreciated as well.

Green Beans with Garlicky Pistachio Vinaigrette from Molly Baz’s Cook This Book 
Elizabeth:I love this recipe it is the perfect summer picnic side. Its fast delicious refreshing and healthish. 

Kosher salt

¾ cup roasted, salted pistachios

1½ pounds green beans, wax beans or Romano beans

1 small garlic clove

2 lemons

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1½ ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about ⅓ cup)

Freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring 4 quarts water and 1½ cups salt (see NOTE) to a boil in a large pot. Finely chop the pistachios until all the pieces are about the size of a lentil. Trim the ends of the green beans.

2. COOK THE BEANS: Once the water boils, stir in the beans and cook until just tender but not limp, 5 to 6 minutes. (Taste one and see if they’re done—they shouldn’t be fibrous or tough to chew, but you also don’t want them to be totally lifeless and mushy. Find that happy, snappy medium.) While the beans cook, fill a large bowl with ice and water. Using a spider strainer or tongs, transfer the cooked beans to the ice bath to stop the cooking. Keep them in the ice bath until completely cool.

3. MAKE THE DRESSING: Finely grate 1 garlic clove and the zest of 1 lemon into a medium bowl. Cut the zested lemon and a second lemon in half and add the juice from both lemons to the bowl, whisking to combine. Slowly stream in the olive oil, whisking as you go. Stir in the Parmesan cheese. Season the dressing with salt and lots of black pepper. Stir in the chopped pistachios.

4. DRAIN AND ASSEMBLE: Drain the beans, then transfer them to a clean kitchen towel and pat dry. (You want them as dry as possible so as not to introduce any water into the dressing we just made, which will dilute the flavor.) Add the green beans to the bowl of dressing, tossing well to coat. Taste and add more salt and black pepper if you think it needs it. Serve them up! These are best served very cold, so keep them covered and refrigerated until serving if you’re making them in advance.

NOTE: YES! THAT IS SO MUCH SALT! But the beans are spending only a couple of minutes in the boiling water, and it takes a LOT of salt to penetrate something as fibrous as a green bean. I have tested this outrageous amount of salt, and I promise you, your beans are going to be perfectly seasoned, NOT salty.

Healthy Aging with North Carolina Senior Games

North Carolina Senior Games began in 1983 with a vision to create a year-round health promotion and wellness education program for adults 55 years of age and better. Now including adults 50 and up, NCSG provides an opportunity for fellowship, fitness, and so much more.

NC Senior Games promotes healthy aging by encouraging and providing opportunities for adults to stay active in all areas of their lives. “I'd say that Senior Games plays a very important role in my life physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually because I'm interacting with people, I'm moving, I'm able to stay active as a senior person,” says Senior Games participant Ruby Enoch. 

There is something for everyone at Senior Games! Participants can stay active by taking part in over 30 sports events, including events like basketball & softball tournaments, pickleball, and cornhole. If you want to get your creative juices flowing, try the SilverArts, which includes Performing Arts, Cheerleading, and Literary, Visual, and Heritage Arts. All skill levels are welcome at Senior Games, you just have to be a 50+ North Carolinian.

Participants across the state compete at Local Games each spring. Qualifiers from Local Games are invited to participate in the annual Senior Games State Finals held every fall.  Every two years the State Finals winners qualify for the National Senior Games. For more information, go to www.ncseniorgames.org. Want to volunteer at State Finals? Visit www.ncseniorgames.org/volunteer.

SACRED CONVERSATION: HARM REDUCTION AND HIV
JUNE 3 @ 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Join us to learn about how harm reduction and HIV are connected. We will learn about different ways congregations can get involved in this important work.

Click here to register 

Lutheran Synod - Hickory, NC
June 2-4  all day 
Hickory NC

Join PHW at the Lutheran Synod gathering in Hickory NC. We will be tabling if you are in the area stop by and say hi. We would love to see you. 

NCCUMC Annual Conference
June 15-18  all day 
Greenville  NC

Join PHW at the NCCUMC Annual Conference gathering in Greenville NC. We will be tabling, having mental health screenings and a listening session space provided by our partners at Care Net if you are in the area stop by and say hi. Carenet Counseling will have an anonymous listening sessions and will have screenings for anxiety, depression and information on referrals sign ups (coming soon) and walk ins. Additionally look for healthy snacks and stress relieving activities at our tables.We would love to see you. 

Western N.C. Annual Conference, UMC
June 16-19  all day 
Lake Junaluska  NC

Join PHW at the Western NC Annual Conference gathering in Lake Junaluska NC. We will be tabling, having mental health screenings and a listening session space provided by our partners at Care Net if you are in the area stop by and say hi. Carenet Counseling will have an anonymous listening sessions and will have screenings for anxiety, depression and information on referrals sign ups (coming soon) and walk ins. Additionally look for healthy snacks and stress relieving activities at our tables.We would love to see you.

Sacred Conversations: Older Adults - Fraud & Scams
Friday, June 24th, 11 AM - 12 PM

Join us for a Sacred Conversation to learn how to recognize common forms of scams and fraud targeted towards older adults and how to protect yourself and those in your faith communities. Our speaker for this event is David Kirkman, former enforcement attorney with the North Carolina Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Division and author of Elder Fraud Wars.

Register here: 

Please plan to join the NC Council of Churches for the Partners in Health and Wholeness, Faith and Health Summit 2022. This year our theme will be “Mindful Together” as we gather together in Greensboro, NC for worship, workshops, and the opportunity to be together in support of health ministries across NC. We plan to be in person on September 15th from 9:30AM - 4:00PM and for an early evening meet and greet the night before. Details and a registration link to follow. We look forward to seeing you!

 The PHW Collaborative Pledge is open as of January 15, and the first PHW Mini-Grant Cycle of 2022 opened as of Feb 01. The PHW Collaborative Pledge is a commitment to continuing a journey of putting faith into action in your community. Through the Collaborative Pledge, we aim to promote connections and relationships among our faith communities to share wisdom, provide support, and build a community around health and wholeness. Click here to take the Collaborative Pledge.

 The PHW Mini-Grant allows PHW Collaborative faith communities to support projects that promote health and wholeness while engaging the community. Faith Communities are able to request up to $1000 for an individual mini-grant, and up to $5000 for a community mini-grant among a minimum of three faith communities. Faith communities must have submitted a PHW Collaborative Pledge in the last 12 months for their application to be considered. Community mini-grants are limited. For more information please reach out at PHWinfo@ncchurches.org. Please click here to learn more about PHW Mini-Grants and how to apply

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