Pincher Creek - Communities in Action

The Alberta Healthy Communities Approach (AHCA) supports teams in working towards shared action. These steps include: engaging and creating connections, understanding your community, prioritizing & planning, implementation & evaluation, sustaining the work and sharing success. The 5 essential building blocks of this community development approach are Engagement, Multi-sectoral Collaboration, Political Commitment, Healthy Public Policy, and Asset Based Community Development. 

Starting in 2015, Pincher creek signed up to take part in this provincial pilot project along with 15 other communities across Alberta. Pincher Creek received a 25,000 grant to implement their initiatives. Their vision is to Foster and Grow a Healthy Community.

Introductions and relationship building are core components of this work. Various organizations and community members were invited to participate to discuss the project and brainstorm a big picture overview. In December of 2015, a multisector team was formed which included representation from multiple sectors includinding: organizations, community, health, and workplace. The Pincher Creek Wellness Committee (PCWC) is established with a goal to kick start community action planning!

Using an assessment tool created by ACPLF, The Healthy Places Action tool assesses all community environments (physical, social, economic, and policy) by looking across all settings and multiple sites to give a snapshot of what is available in the community. For example, it looks at whether there are healthy eating options in a rec center compared to looking at the number of fruits and vegetables an individual consumes.

The Pincher Creek assessment identified the following priority areas:

• UV awareness
• Physical Activity accessibility
• Nutrition availability 

An action plan was created with the help of an ACPLF Healthy Promotion Facilitator assigned to the team. The facilitator's role is to support the process, help build internal committee capacity and assist with the tools, data collection, planning, and evaluation.

The following are highlights from the action plan and notes many achievements:

Actions on UV:

2 Portable 10’X20’ tents were purchased for use at community events. A tree is planted for shade. A portable sunscreen stand is set up which includes a wellness board with UV messaging and UV bracelets for public distribution. A picnic table with a sunshade was purchased for the new spray park.

Actions on Physical Activity:

A meditation class is offered to the community. A local Kinesiologist developed brochures with workouts for the outdoor fitness gym. A bike rack project works on building and installing 3 new bike racks. Nerf Wars project is being administered by the Town.  It has been very successful at getting families and youth more active. The nerf wars package is also available to rent out for private functions which helps our group with sustainability costs. Physical literacy kits have been purchased and are used at community events.  They will also be used in partnership with the library summer program. Ads and promotion of the group also go in the Activity Guide.

Action on Healthy Eating:

11 community-raised garden beds were installed in Pincher Creek. A walking route of the 11 gardens is planned for a pathways map update! 4 3x8 wicking beds are built for use of the food bank. Spins offs begin to emerge such as a local Rodeo food truck now offers healthy food!

Pincher Creek is leading the way in community development. Each community has the wisdom to create a healthy environment, so remember to trust the process:

• Build relationships from the start!
• We need to work together.
• Evidence & Research are key
• Learn from others: Celebrate & Share Stories
• Evaluate challenges and successes.
• Build-in sustainability from the start.