​Now open at Austin Public Library every Wednesday from 12:30 to 2:30pm!

New mothers and mothers-to-be are invited to celebrate the launch of the Austin Area Baby Café on Wednesday, March 22. Established in 2000, Baby Café is a national network of breast-feeding drop-ins, combining breastfeeding information with a relaxed, informal environment where mothers can chat and learn about breast-feeding from skilled practitioners and each other.

​In one month this past summer, I saved $180 by doing one single thing. Gardening. From July 7, 2016 to August 7, 2016, my family and I harvested cucumbers, zucchini, lettuce, tomatoes, green beans, sugar snap peas, onions and potatoes from our family garden. After weighing and measuring everything we harvested, and then quantifying
those measurements into prices, I was surprised to see how much we saved - nearly $200.

Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) of Mower County is delighted to once again partner with Mower Refreshed to bring you County Connections. 

​The goal of SHIP is to help Minnesotans live healthier lives by preventing risk factors that lead to chronic disease. Program funding is through the Minnesota Department of Health and works to prevent chronic disease by using strategies that have demonstrated effectiveness based on research and proven best practices. As the new Community Health Specialist and SHIP Coordinator for Mower County, my role is to partner with organizations to increase access to healthy foods, promote active living and reduce tobacco exposure.

​Collaboration is a term tossed around community tables and
within organizations with ease, because at the root, we know
it’s the right thing to do…and if we are dealing with limited
resources it may desperation to survive that forces you to the
table initially, but it’s the collective impact that keeps you
there. Could we impact with greater strength if we explore
what collaboration in the form of collective impact looks like,
feels like, and offers communities who dare to go beyond
collaboration?

​Creating a safe a welcoming community.

As a community member, you will always have that
opportunity to influence someone else’s life. How will you face that challenge? For the past several months I have had the opportunity to work with a
wonderful group of people that truly want to create a safe and welcoming community.