Health & Wellness
McAuley Ministries supports initiatives that improve the overall health status of residents of the Hill District, Uptown, and West Oakland by meeting basic needs, encouraging healthy lifestyles, and providing community-based health care through innovative service delivery models. Priorities include:
- Affordable and safe housing for low- and moderate-income families and special populations, including seniors, veterans, persons who are homeless, and persons with disabilities.
- Support for organizations providing a safety net for basic needs (e.g., food, shelter, transportation, and access to health insurance).
- Initiatives that help seniors to thrive and age in place.
- Behavioral health initiatives that recognize and address the impact of community trauma.
- Evidence-based initiatives that prevent and interrupt gun violence.
- Support for Pittsburgh Mercy innovation that advances new models of health care for vulnerable populations.
- Community gardens and play spaces that encourage healthy eating, exercise, and community socialization.
Stories of Hope
Venture Outdoors
This school year was M.’s first time participating in a Venture Outdoors program. She is a fifth grader at PPS Weil and had the opportunity to engage in Venture Outdoors activities once a month throughout the year during her gym class period. One of the more challenging tasks for the fifth graders is the first time they learn how to use a real compass. M. showed perseverance in learning how to properly use and read the compass and completed the solution to all of the “compass activity cards” that we use to test their skills in compass navigation. After school was closed due to COVID, M.’s dad requested for us to send her the printed activity packets so she could continue the outdoor learning at home.