Sankofa Wellness Village, Winner of the 2022 Pritzker Traubert Chicago Prize, Breaks Ground on First Major Component, Sankofa Village Wellness Center

This press release was first issued on sankofawellnessvillage.org on Monday, September 16, 2024. 

CHICAGO, IL – Today, Garfield Park Rite to Wellness Collaborative, The Community Builders and MAAFA Redemption Project, along with Mayor Brandon Johnson, broke ground on the first major component of the Sankofa Wellness Village – the Sankofa Village Wellness Center. 

Joined by anchor partners Erie Family Health Centers, Rush University System for Health, YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago and others, the Sankofa Village Wellness Center aims to improve health outcomes for Garfield Park residents and close a life expectancy gap of 13 years between members of the community and those of the Loop, just 5 miles away. By holistically addressing many of the factors that impact this disparity – health and wellness, lack of resources, quality of life, economic opportunity, and community violence – the Wellness Center team will work to provide sustainable solutions led by community members. 

Slated for completion by the end of 2025, the Wellness Center will support the Garfield Park Community through: 

• Primary medical care, including reproductive, behavioral, and dental health services; substance use disorder treatment; health education; social drivers of health resource navigation, and training for future community-based healthcare staff, supported by Erie Family Health Centers regardless of insurance status or immigration status 
• Health and social needs screenings for residents, mental health services and training, health promotion and disease prevention programming, and workforce development, supported by Rush University System for Health. 
• Fitness services and equipment, sports programming, group fitness and movement, youth and teen programs, indoor gymnasium and walking track, and drop-in childcare, supported by the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago  

"Everyone in this community deserves high quality healthcare that they can easily access and afford. We are thrilled to take this next big step toward opening Erie Sankofa Village Health Center, and proud to collaborate with the community and our Wellness Village partners," says Dr. Lee Francis, President and CEO, Erie Family Health Centers.  

“This unique collaboration of community residents, organizations and health care providers gets to a core, shared belief that everyone should have a chance to be healthy — and we do that by increasing access to care, creating jobs, providing preventative and mental health services, and so much more,” said Dr. Omar Lateef, president and CEO of Rush University System for Health and Rush University Medical Center. “That’s what the village is all about – creating better health for the entire community.” 

“As an organization committed to strengthening community by connecting all people to their purpose, potential, and each other, the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago is humbled and excited to stand alongside community members, leaders, and advocates today as we break ground on the flagship piece of the Sankofa Wellness Village,” said Dorri McWhorter, President & CEO, YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago. “The community’s vision for — and work toward — this development is years in the making, and we look forward to playing our part in empowering West Garfield Parkers to see it through to fruition.”    

The Wellness Center will also be home to a café, Credit Union, community education and multipurpose room, and terrace space. West Side United, committed to eliminating the stark life expectancy gap experienced by residents in ten Black and Brown neighborhoods on Chicago’s West Side, will move its headquarters to the Wellness Center. 

“Through the Sankofa Wellness Village, we are proud to advance our mission to build and sustain strong communities where all people can thrive,” said Kemena Brooks, development director for The Community Builders. “The start of construction expands opportunities for minority- and women-owned business enterprises, as well as local workers, who will help create this village. Today is a vital milestone as we realize the shared vision towards a healthier and more equitable future for the residents of West Garfield Park.”     

“Today’s groundbreaking is truly a communal celebration. It represents a promising future for West Garfield Park, a neighborhood whose time has come,” said Marshall Hatch Jr., co-founder of the MAAFA Redemption Project and Board Chair of Garfield Park Rite to Wellness Collaborative. "For decades we’ve been grappling with the aftermath of structural violence, but today we start a key piece of the work to rebuild and restore. We’re grateful for all of the Village partners who worked to make today possible, and we’re especially grateful for the residents whose hopes propel our way forward.” 

Learn more about the Sankofa Village Wellness Center via our West Garfield Park YMCA webpage. 

About The Sankofa Wellness Village: The Sankofa Wellness Village is a community-driven initiative led by residents, faith based and health care institutions, nonprofits and other partners in West Garfield Park. It consists of interconnected capital and social investments along the Madison Pulaski commercial corridor that will create opportunities for West Garfield Park residents of all ages to have access to health, wellness and recreation services, along with finance, entrepreneur support, business development, and access to healthy food and the arts. This walkable “village” will connect the Madison-Pulaski corridor with other new public and private investments - such as Garfield Park Community Plaza and Outdoor Roller Rink, and the New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church Campus. The four main components of the Sankofa Wellness Village include: The Sankofa Wellness Center, The MAAFA Center for Arts and Activism (the MAC), the “K” Entrepreneurship Development Hub and the Community Grocer Initiative.