The Northeast Health Equity Consortium is pleased to announce the Raheem Baraka Community Leadership Fellows Program, in honor of the late Boston-based community activist and CEO of Baraka Community Wellness and past co-chair for NHEC.
A labor of love, Raheem founded Baraka Community Wellness as a testament to his fierce commitment to health justice for vulnerable communities in Boston. The cornerstone of his work was Healthy Moms, Healthy Kids, a holistic wellness program that provided fitness and nutritional food to families in the Roxbury and Dorchester neighborhoods of Boston.
Sadly, Raheem passed away in September 2018 from a heart attack at the age of 46, leaving behind a wife and three children.
In this leadership role, the Raheem Baraka Community Fellow will serve as the Boston community voice to support the efforts of the region’s health strategies priorities around the social determinants. In playing this role, the fellow will help to deepen and broaden the local-area work by providing additional perspectives and insights into developing effective strategies that lead to demonstrable impacts within the food access arena.
Founded in 2016, NHEC is a collaborative group that engages clinicians, healthcare providers, researchers, thought leaders, and community organizations. The group promotes change in policy, practices, and programs, and communicates them to improve cardiovascular and stroke-related health outcomes in communities disproportionately impacted by cardiovascular diseases and stroke.
Please download the Fellows Application here for further details and instruction on applying.