Wellness Connection has a 50+ history of providing services related to heart disease and cancer in the Dayton community. Its roots go back to the Dayton Heart Association and the Montgomery County Society for Cancer Control—two organizations formed in the 1950’s to address unmet needs in the local community. In 1994 these two organizations merged to become the Dayton Area Heart & Cancer Association. Over the decades our efforts focused on different kinds of services—from pap smears to preventive screenings, from support groups, education, and services for the uninsured, to fitness centers and cardiac rehab. But throughout the 50 years, the primary goal has been to reduce the impact of heart disease and cancer by teaching people to prevent or live well with a disease.

In recent years the Board of Trustees has seen several other health providers enter the arena of preventive screenings and wellness. At the urging of cancer patients and after evaluating local trends, the Board decided to focus on a significant unmet need in the community: psychosocial support to cancer and heart disease patients who need love, coaching, support, education and best practice information to recover from the depths of a life threatening disease. After thoroughly investigating The Wellness Community model, the organization signed a charter to bring a Wellness Community to Dayton, a program offering professionally-led support groups, comprehensive education, community-building and hope to cancer patients and their caregivers.

This cancer model can be adapted to provide equally strong support services to people with heart disease and their families. We plan to offer this as a pilot project.

In order to focus on a $1.5 million campaign to raise the funds to establish The Wellness Community in the Dayton area, the Board systematically collaborated with other organizations to continue the administration of existing wellness programs so those services would continue to be available. Public Health—Dayton & Montgomery County now operates the fitness center located at Elizabeth Place. Unified Health Solutions now offers Wellness To Go, workplace and community screenings and education.

Here’s the exciting news: Wellness Connection will become The Wellness Community-Dayton Region beginning in 2010. A space will be renovated at Sugar Camp and the new, home-like facility will welcome cancer and heart patients and their families at an open house in April, 2010.

Wellness Connection of the Dayton Region ©2006• (937) 223-4117