Mission Hill Health Movement

Monthly 2 hour Line Dance Class at the Tobin Community Center (Neighborhood Center with Free Memberships for Seniors!). The MHHM is raisning funds to support a 2nd Saturday each monht in 2020. Particpation and fun are increasing monthly

Encourage good health by walking weekly and encouraging walking in the neighborhood
Expanded program in 2019 from 1 group to 2 groups with volunteer walk leaders

The Annual Health and Wellness Fair provide community with opportunity to participate in health screenings, learn about how to maintain their health, opportunities to participate in clinical trials, exposure to neighborhood organizations and to engage in active recreation and exercise. As the neighborhood becomes increasingly transient, the MHHM has a goal of using the Health Fair to connect new residents with the community. Participation is between 150-250 people including children.

Activities for children, teens and adults: Pony Rides, Bounce House, raffles and workshops.

The MHHM is constructing a community garden at 6-8 Gore St. MHHM acquired the lot from the City of Boston in Fall 2020 for a place where the community could learn about gardening, food, and nutrition. The Gore Street Garden inlcudes wheelchair and limited mobility accessible gardening plots as well as raised beds and berry bushes. MHHM has received a $62,000 grant from the City of Boston towards construction cost.
The construction budget is $76,000.

Under development are programs at the garden. MHHM will have gardening programs that include children in a local Head Start and a high school science class. It will also sponsor some community garden plots where people can garden collaboratively with other residents as well as individual garden plots. The cost of this has not been determined. The estimated annual program and garden costs are $30,000-40,000.

In collaboration with Community Noise Lab at Boston University School of Public Health, in January 2019, the MHHM began a 2 year project to understand the sources and locations of Sounds that become Noise on Mission Hill and the impact it has on neighborhood and individual health. The Community Noise Lab and the MHHM participation are funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

In conjuction with local graduate school courses, the MHHM is studying Air Quality at play grounds at the local day care centers. All are adjacent to active parking lots and near major streets. Only one has a "vegetative buffer". The goal is to monitor the air quality at day care playgrounds to understand the sources of air pollutants at the play grounds and to make recommendations for their mitigation.

Monthly 2 hour Line Dance Class gets particpants moving while encouraging social interactions. The program is funded in part by the Mission Hill Fenway Neighborhood Trust and the Tobin Community Center.

MHHM is raising money for a 2nd monthly class in 2020.

Created specifically in response to the concerns of Senior property owners and renters in private property, the program will initally, over several bi monthly sessions, explore a range of issues identified by the Seniors that thet need to address to remain in their homes. Based upon outcomes, the MHHM will work with the Seniors to develop or import programs.

New for Winter 2020-2021. MHHM plans 1-3 weekly farmers markets for December - February to Markets to bring fresh fruits and vegetables to Mission Hill Residents. Farmers accept food support programs such as WIC and SNAP. A special program in Massachusetts allows SNAP (Food Stamps) reciepeints access to produce at Farmers Markets at a reduce rate. Participants come to the market from the greater Boston area.