Live HealthSmart Alabama, a University of Alabama at Birmingham initiative to improve health outcomes across the state, has been awarded a three-year grant from the Mike and Gillian Goodrich Foundation to expand its Community Coach team in Selma and the Dallas County area. The funding will allow LHSA to support the hiring, training and deployment of additional community coaches.

Community coaches are a key strategy in managing chronic health conditions, providing personalized support, wellness education, and guidance to appropriate health care, nutrition, physical activity and educational resources.

Working with residents in the schools, churches and gathering places of the communities they serve, their presence in Selma has already contributed to expanded participation in wellness events, increased preventive screenings and improved follow-through with health care referrals.

“Community coaches bring the efforts of LHSA to life in the community; they live in the community and offer a trusted, knowledgeable voice providing a direct link between community members and LHSA’s initiatives,” said Valeta Neal, expansion director for Live HealthSmart Alabama. “Our coaches provide personalized education to ensure residents understand how their health is impacted by their behaviors.”

Bridget Mills, a community coach based in Selma, says the impact of her work is immediate.

“Being a coach means meeting people where they are, hearing their stories and determining

how I can help them in that moment. I’m able to empower people with knowledge that can make their lives better.”

Mills says rural communities like Selma face challenges in accessing care; but as a coach, she helps residents navigate systems and connect to resources, including food, housing, transportation and health care.

Community coaches connect residents to a range of LHSA programs available in Selma, including:

• Good Nutrition: Pop-up Farmers Market and community/school gardens improve access to and knowledge about healthy fresh fruits and vegetables
• Prevention and Wellness: Pop-up Wellness brings no-cost screenings to locations within the community
• Physical Activity: Fitness classes and walking clubs
• Education: Programs at the school-age level, including HEAL United and Healthy Happy Kids, as well as a virtual Health Education Library with resources that include fact sheets and recipe cards

As Alabama continues to rank among the bottom 10 states in national health outcomes, initiatives like the Community Coach program offer a hopeful, human-centered path forward to a healthier lifestyle. With the support of this Mike and Gillian Goodrich Foundation grant, LHSA is continuing to make good health simple for all Alabamians.

Interested in becoming a community coach? Please complete this interest form.