The Friendly Center in Toledo’s historic Vistula neighborhood is set to undergo a revitalization.
Mercy Health announced last week it was awarding a $290,000 Community Health Fund grant to create a community hub at the nonprofit center at 1324 N. Superior St. Mercy said it was partnering on the project with the Vistula Foundation, which will operate the facility.
“That area is the first-formed neighborhood of the city, and sadly it’s been ignored for a long time,” said Jessica Henry, Mercy’s director of community health in Toledo. “There are not a whole lot of services, and the life expectancy in that neighborhood is much lower than other neighborhoods.”
The initiative will allow Mercy Health to bring health and wellness programming beyond its hospitals’ walls to help address social needs — such as access to healthy food and economic stability. In the end, Ms. Henry said, those unmet social needs have an impact on health outcomes.
The Friendly Center focuses on neighborhood needs by providing resources like food from its emergency food assistance supply, a hygiene closet, tutoring, music programs, a gymnasium, a computer lab, and more.