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North Fork Benefit Hosted by Long Island’s Winegrowing Industry Supports HRHCare’s Agricultural Health Fund, Increases Health Care Access for Agricultural Workers and Their Families
HRHCare’s Agricultural Health Fund Provides Quality Medical Care for Issues like Poor Nutrition, Asthma, Musculoskeletal Conditions, Lack of Preventive Care, and Family Dental and Medical Services
Riverhead, NY – Nearly 150 New Yorkers came together on Thursday to raise $65,000 in support of Long Island’s agricultural workforce at an event for the HRHCare Foundation and the Agricultural Health Fund. Hosted by Long Island Sustainable Winegrowers, Barbara Shinn and David Page of Shinn Estate Vineyards, and Jonathan Russo and Deborah Grayson, the first annual gathering celebrated Long Island’s iconic wine industry by raising funds to support health care access for its workers and to promote sustainable agriculture on Long Island.
“Agriculture is a key economic driver of Long Island’s regional economy and a healthy workforce is key to making it sustainable in the long-term,” said Anne Kauffman Nolon, MPH, President and CEO of Hudson River HealthCare (HRHCare), one of New York’s largest community health center providers. “The funds generously raised by local wine lovers and health care advocates will provide vital medical, dental and behavioral health services to the people who quite literally put food on our plates and drinks in our glasses. We look forward to an even bigger event next year.”
Agriculture is the largest industry on Long Island, contributing nearly $260 million to the local economy, yet farmworkers and their families often struggle to gain access to quality health care despite their outsize economic benefit. Many of these families suffer from poor nutrition, asthma, musculoskeletal conditions, and a lack of preventive care. All the proceeds from the “Honoring the Hands” event go toward a “Day of Health” for agricultural workers and their families, led by HRHCare, which serves more than 45,000 patients and employs nearly 250 people at its seven facilities on Long Island alone.
As operators of the only federally qualified health center in Suffolk County, HRHCare provides considerable services for the local agricultural community. “Having healthy workers means having a healthy business, and anything we can do to support them is a win-win for the local economy, and, in this case, wine lovers,” said Barbara Shinn, founder of Long Island Sustainable Winegrowers and Shinn Estate Vineyards. “I’m enormously proud that the community was able to come together and support Long Island’s workers and the critical services HRHCare provides.”
Earlier last week, HRHCare celebrated its 40-year record of providing essential health services to New York’s communities with a rededication ceremony at its flagship facility in Peekskill. Joined by Congresswoman Nita Lowey (NY-17), the ceremony honored the legacy of four women who came together in the early 1970s to address the lack of health care services in their community and founded the Peekskill Ambulatory Health Care Center. Last Monday, it was renamed in honor of Reverend Jeannette J. Phillips, the organization’s first board president in 1975 and the last living “founding mother.”
About HRHCare
HRHCare (Hudson River HealthCare) is a nonprofit, New York State licensed, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). Founded in 1975 to provide care to the medically underserved population of Peekskill, HRHCare has grown to include 24 directly operated health centers and six sub-recipient health centers delivering care throughout a 10 county region of New York to 135,000 patients with over 200 primary care practitioners.
HRHCare provides comprehensive services including adult and pediatric care; obstetrical and gynecological care; family planning; HIV counseling, testing and referral; dental services; mental health counseling; nutrition counseling; podiatry; WIC services; health education; and a full complement of outreach, translation, transportation, benefits counseling and health insurance enrollment assistance.
HRHCare has a profound commitment to the communities it serves and works to improve community health through partnerships and collaborations with key stakeholders including local businesses, social service agencies, housing organizations, food banks, agricultural worker alliances and other community organizations.
For Full Information:
Elizabeth Kenigsberg
646.930.0222
ekenigsberg@skdknick.com
