Communities Organizing to Promote Equity

Local Health Equity Action Teams

The four women who serve as COPE's regional LHEAT leads stand together in front of a quilt
COPE aims to advance health equity by mobilizing partners and collaborators across Kansas. Our Local Health Equity Action Teams (LHEATs) are made up of members who represent and serve the Kansans being prioritized and community health workers and other members of public health organizations engaging in health equity work.

LHEAT Leadership

Project Director
Christina Pacheco, JD, MPH

LHEAT Advisor
Vicki Collie-Akers, Ph.D., MPH, associate professor in the Department of Population Health

LHEAT Advisor
Mary Ricketts

Regional Community Lead: Central
Nadine Long

Regional Community Lead: West
Clarissa Carrillo

Regional Community Lead: Northeast
Katherine Atcheson

Regional Community Lead: Southeast
Jody Love

Local Health Equity Action Teams (LHEAT) by region

Map of COPE counties and regions in Kansas. WEST: Finney, Ford, Grant, Seward, Sherman, Thomas. CENTRAL: Barton, Cowley, Harvey, Mitchell, Sedgwick. NORTHEAST: Brown, Geary, Jackson, Johnson, Shawnee, Wyandotte. SOUTHEAST: Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Montgomery.

Region	County	LHEAT Lead	Regional Community Lead
West	Finney	Beth Koksal	Clarissa Carrillo
	Ford	Phil Handsaker
	Grant	Nancy Borthwick
	Seward	Susana Hernandez
	Sherman & Thomas	Donna Swager

Region	County	LHEAT Lead	Regional Community Lead
Central	Barton	Callie Miller	Nadine Long
	Cowley	Robin Henderson
	Harvey	Rebecca Barrett-Fox
	Mitchell	Maddi Sutter
	Sedgwick	Pamaline King-Burns

Region	County	LHEAT Lead	Regional Community Lead
Northeast	Brown & Jackson	Belinda Estes	Katherine Atcheson
	Geary	Felicia Green and Courtney Angelou
	Johnson	Abby Corrin Jocelyn Hernandez
	Shawnee	Nikki Ramirez-Jennings
	Wyandotte	Kimberly Weaver

Region	County	LHEAT Lead	Regional Community Lead
Southeast	Bourbon	TBD	Jody Love
	Crawford	Brad Stroud
	Labette	Lauren Coover
	Montgomery	Linda Follett

Connect with Our Community Partners

We have listed the Facebook pages/groups for our partners across Kansas. This list will be updated as more organizations create social media spaces.

Communities Organizing to Promote Equity COPE Communities Organizing to Promote Equity COPE - Sedgwick County

Barton County LHEAT - COPE Barton County LHEAT - COPE

Parsons Kansas Community Garden Parsons Kansas Community Garden

Ton Miras Niera stands with one of several tables of donated food awaiting distribution in Garden City, KS

During a site visit in Barton County, members of the COPE team and their visiting guests stand beside a large colorful sign in Great Bend, Kansas

One of the women who prepare meals at Crawford County's Wesley House explains to COPE leaders and visitors how she cooks for the people who come to the center to eat.

COPE leaders and a local LHEAT attend a meeting at a community center in Hiawatha, Kansas

COPE team members and visitors meet with the people who run the Wyandotte County Laundry Love event in Kansas City, KS

A volunteer with Crawford County's Laundry Love initiative unloads a dryer at a laundromat in Alma, KS

During a visit to a regional wellness hub in the Wichita, Kansas, area, a woman shows off a community hygiene closet

Ton Miras Neira and Christina Pacheco accept awards for their service to Wyandotte County at the CHC headquarters