Beginning in Summer of 2021, the HCC partnered with the OMNI Institute to undergo a strategic planning process. During this process, the HCC held listening sessions with coalition members, staff of partnering organizations, and other community members. From this process, the HCC developed a new identity including a revised mission and values, new goals, and new name: the Healthy Community Collaborative.

From July to December of 2022, HCC offered 3 learning opportunities for HCC members on the topics of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.

In September of 2022, the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Community Services Board’s Behavioral Health Wellness Program received American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to expand their program and initiatives. The HCC and HRCSB collaborated to create a new position using these funds. The duties of this new position specifically support the work of the HCC. This position was successfully filled in February of 2023.

On June 27, 2023, HCC hosted its first in-person coalition meeting since pre-COVID, reintroducing the coalition as Healthy Community Collaborative.

During HCC’s Coalition Meeting in September 2023, attendees shared the health disparities that they have are aware of or have experienced in the Harrisonburg-Rockingham community and participants selected the disparities that they felt most passionate about focusing on.

The disparities most-selected by the coalition were then grouped into 3 different categories:

Stigma/Prejudice | Barriers to Accessing Resources and Services | Health Literacy and Resource Navigation

In January 2024’s Coalition Meeting, attendees reviewed the 3 categories of health disparities developed from the previous coalition meeting to determine 1) what was already being done 2) what was missing 3) what could be done and 4) what is not yet known.

Using the information gathered in January 2024’s Coalition Meeting, HCC’s Steering Committee met to determine what general project ideas would be most relevant and feasible for HCC to focus on. Those meetings yielded 6 ideas:

A march to increase awareness about topic/issue area | A media-art event/campaign related to a group/experience that is often stigmatized | Training for providers/community organizations on stigma and cultural humility | Community connection events | Increasing available interpretation and/or translation services | Life skills and health education workshops

In HCC’s April 2024 Coalition Meeting, members drafted ideas and details for each of the 6 general project ideas and presented these draft-projects for the coalition. The coalition then voted on which of these projects HCC would prioritize based on what members thought 1) Is Most Important 2) What HCC should focus on First and 3) What projects would members be willing to assist with.

From these votes and further discussion, HCC determined that its first project would be related to Life Skills and Health Education Workshops

In August of 2024, HCC members volunteered to be a part a group dedicated to stewarding HCC’s project(s) related to Life Skills and Health Education Workshops and met together for the first time.

This group is called the “Workshop Project Team”.