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Health Equity, Access & Longevity

HEAL Coalition

The Central Valley HEAL Coalition is a Fresno County partnership for chronic disease prevention and health equity. It brings resident voices, community organizations, care partners and researchers together to set priorities that reflect lived experience, especially in immigrant and refugee communities.

Where it begins
Fresno County, with early attention to cardiometabolic health and the needs of immigrant and refugee communities.
How it works
Founding members map what already exists, identify gaps, and choose a practical shared priority before any program, research study or funding proposal is pursued.
The coalition

Ten sectors, one shared purpose

HEAL brings together the people closest to community needs with the partners who can help address them. Each perspective matters, and no one approach is chosen before residents and coalition members identify the need.

01

Residents, Families & Community Leaders

Immigrant and refugee residents, caregivers and trusted community leaders keep priorities grounded in lived experience.

02

Youth Voices & Leaders

Young people help shape priorities, language and solutions that reflect the realities they and their peers experience.

03

Cultural & Community-Based Organizations

Trusted organizations recruit participants, host listening sessions and surface barriers early.

  • Norma Trinidad-Diaz, Assistant Workshops and Outreach Coordinator, CIVIIC
  • Linette Lomeli, Executive Director, Madera Coalition for Community Justice
  • Jason Williams, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Brain Wise Solutions
  • Pricilla Ramos, Advocacy & Community Organizing Manager, Education & Leadership Foundation
  • Yolanda Randles, Executive Director, West Fresno Family Resource Center
04

Public Health & Prevention

County public health partners provide context and align work with local prevention priorities.

  • Christine Vang, Health Educator, Health Disparities Program, Fresno County Department of Public Health
05

Primary & Community Health Care

Community clinics help define workable screening, referral and follow-up pathways.

  • Janet Paine, Director of County Account Management for the Central Valley, Anthem Blue Cross
  • Dr. Ferishta Gousse, Physician, Clinica Sierra Vista
  • Tom Webster, Manager, Communications and Community Engagement, Clinica Sierra Vista
  • Alyssa Gurney, Chief Strategy Officer, Central Valley Health Network
  • Brittney Mendez, Communications & Community Engagement Specialist, Clinica Sierra Vista
06

Hospitals & Specialty Care

Clinical partners offer guidance, referral capacity and community-benefit alignment.

07

Food, Nutrition & Healthy Food Access

Food and nutrition partners connect screening, education, produce access and dietitian support.

  • Luis Parrales, Executive Director, ACTS Foundation
08

Physical Activity & Community Design

Community design partners identify accessible activity options and neighborhood barriers.

  • Dr. Anthony (Tony) Molina, Past Chair, Fresno County Bicycle Coalition
09

Government & Civic Institutions

Cities, counties, public agencies and civic groups help connect prevention priorities with public systems and community-wide action.

  • Elia Medina, Director of Community Services and Parent Resource Centers, Madera Unified School District
10

Academic & Research Institutions

Researchers contribute evaluation capacity and evidence in support of community-defined priorities.

  • Dr. Kara Zografos, Dean of the College of Health and Human Services, Fresno State
  • Alicia Nelson, Director of Wellness Services, Fresno State
Meeting access

Coalition meetings

The HEAL Coalition meets online on the last Monday of every month from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. To attend, please complete the request form below. Once your request is reviewed, the HEAL / USEF team will email the current join link and meeting details.

Requests are reviewed by the HEAL / USEF team. Please allow up to one business day for confirmation.

Prefer email? Write to info@usef.us. We collect only what we need to review your request and contact you about HEAL, and we never publish meeting details on this page.