The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team

The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team HBCAT helps people in Southeast Kansas start, grow, or improve their businesses. The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team, Inc.

We offer one-on-one support, job training, community health workers, and lead community development efforts to create strong, healthy, and thriving communities. is registered through the State of Kansas as a non-profit organization. The action team strives to increase access to healthy food and physical activity, promote commercial tobacco cessation, enhance quality of life and encourage economic

growth. The problems of health inequity and social injustice are complex in nature and inextricably linked to key economic indicators. The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team aims to improve health outcomes, promote economic inclusion, and address inequities through direct action in the local community and by nurturing relationships with other helping organizations throughout Kansas.

09/04/2026

🎉 51 businesses expressed interest. 24 complete applications. 8 opportunities to turn ideas into action! 10 SEK counties represented!!

SEED applications are closed, and we’re thrilled with the response! Eight entrepreneurs will receive a $1,000 micro-grant plus 10 weeks of learning, mentorship, and support to develop their business ideas.

A huge thank-you to our community partners for helping connect entrepreneurs to SEED:

• The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team
• Communities Organizing to Promote Equity-Bourbon County
• Crawford County Local Health Equity Action Team
• Live Well Crawford County
• Grow Labette
• Live Healthy Montgomery County
• LHEAT - Local Health Equity Action Team, Montgomery County KS
• Stay Strong - Live Long - Wilson County
• Communities Organizing to Promote Equity (COPE)
• Family Response Advocates
• Pittsburg Police Department
• Cultivate Fredonia
• Woodson County Coalition
• Allen County Multi-Agency Team-ACMAT
• Whole Heart Coalition
• Neosho County Agency Resource Team (NCART)
• Caney Valley Agape Network & Food Pantry

Thank you to our SBEC judges for sharing their time and expertise:

• Jody Love
• Melissa W**d
• Brianne Ford
• Heather Lynn Horton
• Blanca Lopez
• Cheryl Brown
• Frankie Elder-Reedy

They’ll be joined by Janet Miller with Network Kansas and Darrell Pulliam, Rural Community Partners Chair!

We’re grateful to Kansas Food Action Network and Pathways to a Healthy Kansas / Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas for helping make SEED possible, and to Network Kansas for supporting our application and judging process.

Award announcements are coming September 15! Thank you to everyone who applied, shared the opportunity, and helped entrepreneurs take this next step. ❤️

Need workforce assistance this September? KANSASWORKS is still here to help!Throughout September, KansasWorks Pittsburg ...
09/04/2026

Need workforce assistance this September? KANSASWORKS is still here to help!

Throughout September, KansasWorks Pittsburg services at Healthy Bourbon County Action Team will be available virtually. Schedule a virtual appointment or stop by the Pittsburg Workforce Center Monday–Friday from 8 AM–5 PM.

đź“Ť 1005 E. Jefferson St., Pittsburg, KS
đź“ž (620) 231-4250

Whether you’re searching for a job, exploring new opportunities or looking for workforce resources, help is just a call away!

Not every viral post or video tells the full story, especially when it comes to drinking, smoking and va**ng.For young a...
08/27/2026

Not every viral post or video tells the full story, especially when it comes to drinking, smoking and va**ng.

For young adults ages 18–20, social media can make these behaviors seem harmless, normal or more common than they really are. Before believing or sharing a claim, check the source and look for information from trusted health organizations, medical professionals and prevention experts.

Knowing the facts can help you understand the risks, resist social pressure and make choices that protect your health and your future.

Pause. Check the source. Know the facts before you share.



Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services
Rural Community Partners
Path of EASE Association
Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center
Balloon Media

Happy World Entrepreneurs’ Day! 💡👏Today, we’re celebrating the small businesses and entrepreneurs who help Bourbon Count...
08/21/2026

Happy World Entrepreneurs’ Day! 💡👏

Today, we’re celebrating the small businesses and entrepreneurs who help Bourbon County thrive ... and reminding local business owners that HBCAT is here to help!

Through our small business support services, HBCAT connects entrepreneurs with resources, technical assistance, funding opportunities, business development support and connections to help turn ideas into action and businesses into stronger community assets.

Because supporting local entrepreneurs means creating jobs, strengthening our economy and building healthier, thriving communities.



Rural Community Partners

Taking care of your mental health can look different for everyone. Talking with a friend, taking a walk, seeing a counse...
08/19/2026

Taking care of your mental health can look different for everyone. Talking with a friend, taking a walk, seeing a counselor, getting active, or simply asking for help are all ways to cope with stress.

Alcohol, to***co, and va**ng may feel like temporary relief, but they can make anxiety, depression, sleep, and stress harder to manage. For young adults ages 18 to 20, building supportive coping skills now can strengthen mental health and reduce the need to rely on substances.

Struggling does not mean you have failed, and asking for help is always a sign of strength. Your mental health matters.



Rural Community Partners
Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services
Path of EASE Association
Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center
Balloon Media

Aura and Jenni were out at Fort Scott Community College today representing the Bourbon County Local Health Equity Action...
08/18/2026

Aura and Jenni were out at Fort Scott Community College today representing the Bourbon County Local Health Equity Action Team and connecting with young adults! 🙌

They shared information and resources around alcohol and to***co prevention, invited students to take our young adult survey, and spread the word about opportunities to get involved with our new Young Adult Advisory Council.

It’s all about hearing directly from young adults, understanding what matters to them, and giving them a voice in building a healthier Bourbon County.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and shared their thoughts!

Making the healthy choice the default!

🍎🥦 10 Years of Impact: Building Healthier HabitsMore Bourbon County residents are getting fruits and vegetables into the...
08/17/2026

🍎🥦 10 Years of Impact: Building Healthier Habits

More Bourbon County residents are getting fruits and vegetables into their daily routines.

🍎 The percentage consuming fruit less than once a day improved by about 6%.

🥦 The percentage consuming vegetables less than once a day improved by about 8%.

It’s another sign of meaningful progress — and what can happen when we work together to make the healthy choice the default, create supportive systems and environments, and advance good health-focused policies.

Here’s to continuing to build a healthier Bourbon County. 💚



Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas
Rural Community Partners

Healthy communities don’t happen by accident. They’re built through making the healthy choice the default, creating supp...
08/11/2026

Healthy communities don’t happen by accident.

They’re built through making the healthy choice the default, creating supportive systems and environments, and advancing good, health-focused policies.

Over the past decade, the percentage of Bourbon County adults classified as overweight has dropped from 36.6% to 26.6% — a reduction of more than 27%.

It’s another sign of what sustained community action can accomplish.

10 years. Real progress. A healthier Bourbon County.



Rural Community Partners
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas

08/11/2026

CFSEK announces the 2026 recipients of the Community Impact Grants (formerly known as the General Funds grants).

Address

104 North National
Fort Scott, KS

Website

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