From left are Christie Ball, Christine Cheronis, Marleen Garone, LJ Baylis, Art Wingerter, Johana D’Angelo and Judy Miller.

A health equity innovation award from Univera Healthcare will support Community Connections at Findley Lake, a private not-for-profit organization founded in 2013 to support residents of Findley Lake and the surrounding communities.

Community Connections is based in the Mina-Findley Lake Community Center at 2883 North Road, Findley Lake. The center recently hosted a check presentation by Univera President Art Wingerter.

“Working together with Community Connections, we are confronting the crisis in health disparities, and addressing long-standing gaps in care and services in underserved communities,” Wingerter said.

The funding from Univera Healthcare will be used to address health disparities in rural Chautauqua County through community health advocate and home companion programs, and support nurses and aids working with residents in their homes.

“According to the American Community Survey 2020 census, 6,896 people reside in the communities served by Community Connections, and 3,837 of them ages 62 years and older,” said Community Connections Executive Director L.J. Baylis. “In 2023, our nurses, aids, educational staff and volunteers provided 8,000 services to our most vulnerable aging residents and over 2,000 of these services were directly accessing and coordinating health care services.”

Community Connections provides services to residents as they age, including in-home support services and to encourage socialization, activities, and attendance at educational programs. It also provides information and assistance, health care coordination and access, transportation, food access and meal delivery, technology support and education, and wellness activities.

Univera Healthcare in based in Buffalo and has an office at 103 West Third St., Jamestown. The health insurer invited nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organizations serving Western New York to apply for Health Equity Innovation Awards to help fund health and wellness programs that address racial and ethnic health disparities.