Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, SD

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2021

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: Organizers wanted to ensure the Red Cloud Indian School's weekly farmers market was welcoming to elders. The Pine Ridge Reservation is a food desert, but the market offers residents access to fresh produce, as well as ingredients for traditional foods, teas and medicines. To attract older adults to the market, they launched Elder Hours, which feature traditional cooking demonstrations and other educational offerings. They also added wayfinding signage to help elders navigate to parking spaces and seating near vendors, which market organizers specifically set aside for older adults. To help people transport their purchases, Red Cloud purchased branded tote bags, which they distribute to elders who visit the market. Project organizers hope the outreach efforts help decrease longstanding health disparities among tribal members.

Myrtle Beach, SC

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: Using public art, the City of Myrtle Beach set out to spread the word about safe walking and biking, as well as COVID-19 public health protocols. To do this, the City hosted a competition for local artists of all ages, inviting them to submit designs with a safety theme. They then selected 10 winning designs and added text with safety messages to them. With the state Department of Transportation's blessing, the designs became colorful, vinyl wraps for traffic utility boxes at intersections around town. Organizers say the project demonstrated the value of public art, with residents and business owners looking for ways to replicate the results in other neighborhoods.

Springfield, IL

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: A new online order system and optional curbside pickup at Springfield's Old Capitol Farmers Market reduced shoppers' risk of COVID-19 exposure. The improvements ensured that older adults and SNAP users could access fresh and healthy food from the popular market. Downtown Springfield Inc. replaced SNAP tokens with Healthy Ways scannable cards, which limit the need for physical contact at checkout. Following the change, the market saw an increase in SNAP transactions. In addition, more than 150 community members took advantage of the curbside option, which reduced in-person foot traffic and provided a safe shopping alternative to those most at risk.