Fifteen years ago, people who worked in health care in Henry County got together and formed CHART, the Community Health Assessment and Resource Team.
The purpose: to identify health needs in the county and find resources to meet those needs.
“Henry County needed a health-care coalition that would involve all of our community partners,” explained Tyler Pulcini.
Gary French, who works at the Henry County Health Center (HCHC), was president of the group for many years, Tyler said. Now Tyler, community outreach coordinator at HCHC, is the coalition’s president.
CHART addresses health concerns identified by the Henry County Risk Assessment study, Tyler said. The members recently chose reducing food insecurity in families with school-age children as a priority. Through its inaugural Healthy Communities Golf Tournament last June, CHART raised enough money to erase the entire school-lunch debt of students at Henry Elementary School, he said, which was $4,200. CHART also gave $2,000 to the Windsor School District, which erased three-fourths of the school-lunch debt, Tyler said. Smaller school districts in Henry County received $600 each.
“School-lunch debt follows a student through the school system, and prevents the student from receiving a diploma,” Tyler said.
A graduate of Missouri State University, Tyler is originally from Springfield. Part of his job in Clinton is teaching life skills classes once a week for sixth graders, and health education to teenagers in high schools.Tyler is married to a Clinton kindergarten teacher, and they have two school-age sons.
Tyler said he loves his job as community outreach coordinator.
“I enjoy going out and talking to people, and helping in any way that I can,” he said.
In addition to running the HCHC Facebook, henrycohealth.org, and sending out press releases, he is a Clinton Chamber of Commerce Ambassador and a member of the Clinton Rotary Club.
Tyler’s office is deep in the warrens of the Henry County Health Center, which is located inside Compass Health, off of north Second at 1800 Community Dr. in Clinton. The HCHC is the place to go if you have young children and need necessities — a free car seat, a safe crib or vaccinations. Nutrition supplies for mothers and babies are available through WIC, the women, infants and children program.
The Health Center also offers lab and medical tests, and a rabies clinic for pets. It issues birth and death certificates, processes septic permits, and does water testing. Sacks of free condoms are available to pick up at the front desk. The center is moving in two months to its new building at 111 N. 3rd St., behind Hawthorn Bank.
Members of CHART come from churches, school districts, businesses and non-profits as well as from Compass Health, Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare and Four Seasons Hospice. School counselors who attend meetings keep CHART aware of the needs of students they see at the schools, Tyler said.
“The needs are big,” he said.
The Leesville School District used funds from CHART to buy shoes and coats for students, he said. CHART donates $2,000 every year to the local Back to School Fair, he said, where free school supplies are distributed.
CHART also supports health-related projects that people bring to the group’s attention. They include a running group for girls that a teacher in Windsor started to promote exercise. The girls also receive education in nutrition and eating right. At a local church, CHART supported a stop-smoking class.
“I would love to grow CHART and have more members,” Tyler said.
The more members, the more input CHART would have into what is going on in Henry County, he said, and the more insight into the needs of the community. Besides food insecurity, transportation is a recognized need in Henry Country, he said.
CHART meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 11 a.m. at the Rotary Building, 200 W. Franklin. The public is welcome to attend. On a good day, as many as 30 members show up, he said, and give organizational reports on events they are holding.
“We all support each other’s events,” he said.
CHART’s next fundraiser is a Pickleball Tournament on Oct. 28, and is a benefit for the Angel Tree and Christmas Cheer, both local projects that provide Christmas gifts and food to families whose budgets don’t stretch to extras.
For more information or to sign up for the Pickleball tournament, call 660-223-3210 or email Tyler.pulcini@lpha.mo.gov. The tournament will be at the Artesian Park tennis courts, starting at 8 a.m.. Competition includes men’s, women’s and mixed doubles, pool play followed by bracket style, with cash prizes for first and second place. Sponsorships are $200.
