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Working Groups
Enhance systems that have broad impacts on families and communities
One of the most effective ways to eliminate health disparities and reduce infant mortality is to engage the community in developing strategies to address challenges that affect them.
Working with families, schools, policy makers and faith communities to become actively involved in identifying relevant issues, making decisions on what needs to be accomplished, and then implementing those changes, leads to success on every level.
Leading Ladies for Healthy Babies
The Leading Ladies for Healthy Babies (LLHB) implements evidence-based practices through local faith-based ministries to reduce infant mortality and improve the health and wellbeing of African American women and their families.
Each Leading Lady is designated by her affiliated faith community to serve as a member of LLHB.
Meeting Schedule
Leading Ladies /Pastoral Engagement:
Meet monthly (by invitation)
Fatherhood Initiative:
Meet monthly
Food and Nutrition:
Meet quarterly
For additional information or to join a work group contact
Food and Nutrition
It is estimated that 23.5 million people in the US live in food deserts. More than half are low-income. Families are often forced to shop at convenience stores where costs are high and food is largely pre-packaged with low nutritional value and high calorie counts. The lack of a grocery store leaves communities with higher rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and other diet-related issues.
The Food and Nutrition Work Group provides social supports and education on food and nutrition to pregnant and parenting families
Fatherhood Initiative
Being a dad begins even before a baby is born!
The IMA Fatherhood Initiative works to engage faith and community leaders to help educate and support young men understand the important role their involvement plays in the family. Fathers who are active in their children's upbringing can significantly benefit their children's early development, academic achievement, and wellbeing.
Pastoral Engagement
The faith community has long been a source of care and comfort for people in need. Great concern has been given to individual’s well-being — in mind, body and spirit.
The IMA is working closely with the faith community to help accomplish our mission that all babies are born into a community that gives them a safe place to sleep, to live and to flourish.
"Observe the life moving like a river around you...and realize that the images you make may become part of the collective history of the time that you are living in."
– Eli Reed