Holyoke Consumer Health Library, Inc.

Mailing address: HCHL, Inc., 56 Nonotuck Street, Holyoke, MA 01040-2666
Incorporated July 11, 2001. Federal Identification No. 04-3572817
www.holyokehealth.info

December 4, 2006

Mr. Daniel Ross
Executive Director
Nuestras Raíces
329 Main Street
Holyoke, MA 01040

Re: W. K Kellogg Foundation project P0123896

Dear Daniel,

On behalf of Holyoke Consumer Health Library, Inc., I submit this letter of commitment to the "Food and Fitness Initiative" project.

We are delighted to work collaboratively with Nuestras Raíces, Holyoke Health Center, the Holyoke Public Schools, and other local partners in this effort to improve the health and fitness of Holyoke residents. We are a small community organization dedicated to increasing access to and use of reliable sources of health information. We maintain a "virtual library" via our website www.holyokehealth.info.

In summer 2006 we operated a booth at the Holyoke Farmers' Market on Thursdays 12-4 pm for 17 weeks. Two librarians promoted and demonstrated MedlinePlus.gov in Spanish as well as English using a portable computer with access to the Internet via a local WiFi access point. This successful outreach project was funded by the New England Regional Office of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (under National Library of Medicine). We also attended the Council of Aging's FarmShare distribution, offering nutrition and health information to the forty low-income seniors who came to pick up their weekly shares of fresh vegetables and fruit.

The mission of the Holyoke Consumer Health Library, Inc. is to provide Holyoke residents with access to health information to empower them to better advocate for their health needs. We seek to:

  • Build awareness of health information resources available in the community;
  • Promote coordination among hospitals, agencies, health centers, and libraries in order to provide access to health information;
  • Identify and assess gaps in health information resources and barriers to accessing information resources.

The Holyoke Consumer Health Library, Inc, is committed to reflecting and affirming the diverse ethnic and racial cultures and spirit of Holyoke by promoting information that is in the appropriate language and reading level and is culturally sensitive.

To support this "Food and Fitness Initiative", we will work with the Collaborative in the following ways:

  1. One HCHL librarian or representative will attend monthly meetings of the Holyoke Food & Fitness Policy Council (HPFFC) during the two-year Planning Phase, participate actively in the planning process, and serve on subcommittees as appropriate.
  2. The HCHL website (with relevant domain name "holyokehealth.info") may be used for posting of information for dissemination. For instance, new pages devoted to Food and Fitness issues could be created. See for example the Water page created in 2004: http://www.holyokehealth.info/water/
  3. We will use our librarian skills to assist in information gathering, as needed.
  4. We can draw on our connections to other librarians and networks, e.g.:
    • Medical Library at Holyoke Medical Center and other health libraries in the Western Massachusetts Health Information Coalition
    • Holyoke Public Library and other public libraries in the Western Massachusetts Regional Library System, C/WMARS system
    • Western Massachusetts Center for Health Communities library
    • Massachusetts Board of Library Commisioners (databases)
    • North Atlantic Health Science Librarians (NAHSL)
    • Document delivery service via Baystate Medical Library
    • NN/LM and NLM handouts, databases and services

Please contact us if you would like any additional information regarding our organization or our commitment to this project.

Sincerely yours,

Sandra N. Ward
President
Holyoke Consumer Health Library, Inc.