The City of Kansas City, Missouri Parks and Recreation and Public Health Department have teamed up to offer free annual community center passes, a $250 value, to KCMO residents from zip codes 64126, 64127, 64128, 64129, 64130, OR 64132. To receive one of 50 remaining passes, residents are asked to participate in “Life X,” the City’s place-based approach to mobilizing residents living in zip codes where 94% of residents live below the Federal Poverty Level and life expectancy rates are on average 14.9 years less than other areas of the city.
Led by KC Parks and the KCMO Health Department, and made possible with a grant from The Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City (HCF), Life X hopes to engage 200 community members in the conversation to build a healthier Kansas City where zip codes no longer dictate life expectancy. The program seeks to connect the wisdom, history, and insights of residents with the resources of local government to empower individuals as advocates and catalysts for positive change in their community.
“Too often, residents are not given the opportunity to authentically participate in conversations and decisions that have the potential to improve the health and well-being of their community. This issue is even more prevalent in low-income neighborhoods, where social distrust is high and understanding how to affect community change is much lower than in affluent neighborhoods,” said KC Parks Deputy Director Terry Rynard. “Building the capacity of communities is a crucial step to resident-driven solutions that reduce health inequities in Kansas City.”
In addition to annual community center passes, KC Parks is also offering participants access to healthy lifestyle and fitness classes, as well as resident leadership training exclusive to program participants.
With 150 people already signed up, KC Parks is looking to fill the 50 remaining spots within the next two weeks. Residents interested in participating can sign up at any of KC Parks ten community centers:
- Gregg/Klice, 1600 John “Buck” O’Neil Way, Kansas City, MO 64108
- Tony Aguirre, 2050 West Pennway, Kansas City, MO 64108
- Brush Creek, 3801 Emanuel Cleaver II Blvd, Kansas City, MO 64130
- Southeast, 4201 E 63rd St, Kansas City, MO 64130
- Marlborough, 8200 The Paseo, Kansas City, MO 64131
- Line Creek, 5940 NW Waukomis Dr, Kansas City, MO 64151
- Kansas City North, 3930 NE Antioch Rd, Kansas City, MO 64117
- Garrison, 1154 E 5th St, Kansas City, MO 64106
- Westport-Roanoke, 3601 Roanoke Rd, Kansas City, MO 64111
- Hillcrest, 10401 Hillcrest Rd, Kansas City, MO 64134
CONTACT
LifeX PROGRAM INFORMATION: Jordan Brown, KC Parks, (816) 513-7567