Faith & Health: Food for Thought — Strengthening Communities Through Faith and Partnership
The Faith & Health: Food for Thought virtual training brought together faith leaders, public health professionals, and community partners to explore how collaboration can improve community health and well-being. The session was hosted by D’Elbie Walker, Access & Partnership Liaison with the Office of Health Access and Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) Liaison to the Office of Faith-Based & Community Initiatives (OFBCI), in collaboration with OFBCI.
Featured speaker Gary Zelesky, a nationally recognized author and speaker with over 50 years of ministry experience and three decades of corporate leadership, shared powerful insights on servant leadership and the importance of caring for spiritual, physical, and emotional health. Drawing from his personal health journey, he challenged participants to move beyond complacency and serve their communities through practical action.
Alongside him, Cherisse Zelesky highlighted successful models of Faith-Based collaboration, including partnerships that provide housing support, financial literacy education, counseling services, and disaster response. She also shared examples of innovative initiatives such as City Serve, which partners with local governments to address issues like housing and workforce readiness, and Connections Fatherhood F.I.R.E., a responsible fatherhood program that helps reduce recidivism by strengthening parenting and employment skills in Las Vegas.
The training emphasized transparency in leadership and the need to openly address mental health and access to care. Gary concluded by sharing the inspiring story of Orlie’s Shoe Drive, a nonprofit that has grown from a small community effort into a large-scale initiative providing thousands of new shoes to children in need.
Overall, the training reinforced that meaningful community impact happens when faith leaders, public health professionals, and community organizations work together to expand access to resources and serve individuals with compassion and purpose.
