Food Policy Council coordinator, Fund Development director and Communications manager appointed to support the health equity needs of Chatham County’s priority populations.
(SAVANNAH, GA) Healthy Savannah and its Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) team are growing to better support the health equity needs of Savannah and Chatham County as the organization prepares for year two of a five-year $5.1 million REACH grant.
“Healthy Savannah has been seeking to make Savannah a healthier place to live, work and play since our founding in 2007,” said Paula Kreissler, executive director. “We have grown from a grassroots initiative to a nationally-recognized coalition with more than 200 community partners that lead and support a culture of health by creating an environment that makes a healthy choice an easy choice.”
Kreissler says much of the organization’s work over the past few years was made possible by REACH funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A five-year $3.4 million grant was awarded to Healthy Savannah in 2018, followed by a second five-year $5.1 million grant in 2023. Both grants have helped the organization foster sustainable health equity among racial and ethnic minority populations in low-wealth neighborhoods in areas of nutrition, physical activity and the reduction of chronic diseases.
Healthy Savannah also received the CDC’s REACH Lark Galloway-Gilliam Award for Advancing Health Equity Challenge in 2022. The award recognizes extraordinary individuals and entities whose work has contributed to advancing health equity.
The organization is now pleased to announce that Sarah Sakile Johnson has been hired as the coordinator of the newly redesigned Savannah Chatham Food Policy Council. Johnson will work closely with members of the Healthy Savannah team and its Nutrition Program manager to support the implementation, coordination, and day-to-day operations of the Council.
“I am looking forward to working in partnership with Healthy Savannah to serve my community,” said Johnson.
The Brookfield, Ill. native moved to Savannah when she was 16. She is a graduate of Savannah State University, earning a Master of Science in marine sciences in 2021 after earning a Bachelor of Science degree from the Armstrong Campus at Georgia Southern University in 2018. Her related job experience includes working with Step Up Savannah and Chatham Emergency Management Agency while serving as an outreach specialist with Americorp VISTA.
Over the past year, Healthy Savannah and community advocates have been restructuring the Council’s purpose, focus, and organizational makeup to address the current barriers of the food landscape in Chatham County in key areas of food access, affordability, transportation and trust issues.
It is estimated that 35,000 Savannahians live more than a mile from a grocery store. In Chatham County, 17.6% of all residents and 21.8% of children are food insecure.
Healthy Savannah has also created a new position to help leverage REACH funds and is pleased to announce that Rikki Powers was recently contracted to serve as Healthy Savannah’s new Fund Development director. The graduate of Wright State University with a bachelor’s in political science and Purdue Global University with a master’s in business administration has more than 18 years of experience in the non-profit sector. She has led multi-million-dollar health and human service organizations based in Reno, Nev., and was recognized for her professional achievements and was named as one of the Reno-Tahoe Young Professionals Network 20 Under 40 Awardees and is a proud member of the Vistage Chief Executives group.
“I am very excited to contract with Healthy Savannah and become part of the Savannah community,” said Powers.
Healthy Savannah is also pleased to welcome Alyssa Love-Archey as its new communications manager. The Augusta, Ga. native is a graduate of Georgia Southern University with a bachelor’s degree in public health, concentrating on global health. Love-Archey is currently pursuing a master’s degree in public health from Georgia Southern University. She previously interned with Healthy Savannah before accepting her current position.
“I am excited to work with Healthy Savannah as I am deeply committed to serving underserved populations and advocating for policy changes,” said Love-Archey. “I hope to share the work of Healthy Savannah through making deeper connections with Savannah residents and local organizations, and collaborate on publications with the strategy managers.”
Love-Archey replaces Zori Castañeda, who stepped down from the position to pursue a career in public health administration.
“We are fortunate to welcome these compassionate and dedicated public health professionals to our team,” said Armand Turner, Healthy Savannah’s deputy director. “They each demonstrate a deep commitment to serving our priority populations beyond traditional boundaries.”
ABOUT THE YMCA OF COASTAL GEORGIA/HEALTHY SAVANNAH GRANT FOR RACIAL AND ETHNIC APPROACHES TO COMMUNITY HEALTH: In September 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded a second grant called Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) to Healthy Savannah and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia. $5.1 million in funding is being deployed over a five-year period to be utilized in an “upstream” approach to foster sustainable health equity among racial and ethnic minority populations in low-wealth neighborhoods in areas of nutrition, physical activity and the reduction of chronic diseases. The renewed funding enables work to continue which began under the initial, five-year, $3.4 million REACH grant awarded in 2018, and a supplemental grant awarded in 2021 to increase awareness and acceptance of COVID-19 and flu adult immunizations. Working with more than 200 community partners and organizations, the Savannah/Chatham County project team’s specific goals in implementing the new five-year grant include fostering physical activity by creating greater access to safe places to walk, run, bike and play; elevating the health and wellness of the community through policy, systems, and environmental change; and providing education and awareness regarding adult immunizations, especially as they relate to health disparities in chronic conditions of hypertension, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and obesity. The administrators will also continue to foster stronger connections between people and the healthcare providers who serve them by supporting awareness and use of the HERO Help Me database. In July 2022, Healthy Savannah received the CDC’s 2022 REACH Lark Galloway-Gilliam Award for Advancing Health Equity Challenge. The award recognizes extraordinary individuals and entities whose work has contributed to advancing health equity.
healthysavannah.org | ymcaofcoastalga.org.
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