HACP opens Allegheny Dwellings wellness center named for community champion Ms. Cheryl Gainey

The HACP was honored to open the Cheryl Gainey Wellness Center at Allegheny Dwellings Thursday morning, June 5.

Ms. Gainey, who served as Allegheny Dwellings Tenant Council president and a term as HACP commissioner, was a champion for the health and wellbeing of her community at Allegheny Dwellings. Her sons, Bruce and Nate, along with other family members, traveled from New York to commemorate the occasion.

“When my mother got sick, my brother and I fought to get her back to Buffalo. She fought us tooth and nail. It was a like championship fight! Now I see why she fought so hard. Thank you for putting her name on something so beautiful and for the love that everyone here has shown! I appreciate you all from the bottom of my heart.”

HACP Chief Community Affairs Officer Michelle Sandidge said Ms. Gainey was the ultimate Tenant Council president who showed empathy and sympathy.

“She was about family, about people, and about the community,” she said, adding the center held a soft opening right before the pandemic hit, and the HACP executive team promised to name the center after Ms. Gainey.

HACP Executive Director Caster D. Binion said Ms. Gainey was always there, and always looking out for the residents and the community.

“Her leadership was outstanding,” he said. “She had the personality to work with everyone. She was a leader that made a difference.”

The center will be led by longtime Coach and Program Director Leroy Dillard, Manager Thomas Chatman, and Coaches Kaleeq Anderson and Ariya Jetter.

The Cheryl Gainey Wellness Center will be open to all Allegheny Dwellings residents two days a week and one day on weekends to start. It will feature a full complement of programs and services designed to meet residents’ needs.

Programs will include mentoring, instructional boxing, Fitness 4 Life, women’s self-defense classes, soul line dancing, hip-hop aerobics, nutrition education, leadership development, support for single mothers, and behavioral health and crisis counseling workshops.

HACP staff will also use the space to promote its in-house resident services, such as the Family Self-Sufficiency and Resident Employment programs and Digital Literacy Initiatives.

The HACP would like to thank Highmark Wholecare, the Buhl Foundation, and the Three Rivers Adoption Council for their generous support with this project. The Cheryl Gainey Wellness Center is also supported by HACP’s nonprofit, Clean Slate E3.

During Thursday’s ceremony, George Ifill, Senior Community Engagement & Growth Specialist with Highmark Wholecare, said Highmark Wholecare is a community-based mission-driven healthcare organization that believes in helping all patients physically, mentally, and emotionally.

“That’s why we are proud to support the reopening of the Cheryl Gainey Wellness Center,” he added. “Highmark Wholecare enjoys working with the Housing Authority. We have supported Virtual Parenting Classes, Senior Movie Nights, and wellness events, and we appreciate the HACP’s work to address all key aspects of a person’s health. Thank you for your work to reopen this important community site.”

Coach Dillard said he is excited to start a whole new physical fitness program for families at Allegheny Dwellings, and he and his team are striving to not just make the program about physical fitness, but also incorporate education.

He expressed his wish to take the youth on trips, such as to Washington, D.C., to which Mr. Binion promised the HACP would fund.

“Mr. B and his staff here are first class,” he said, expressing gratitude for the tireless efforts of the HACP executive, Resident Self-Sufficiency, Facility Services, and Community Affairs teams.

He and Chatman presented several plaques to HACP staff to recognize their contributions to the wellness center.

“We appreciate the vision and leadership of the Housing Authority,” Chatman said.

Thursday’s ceremony concluded with a ribbon cutting, tours of the facility, and the upbeat sounds of Hugo Cruz and Caminos.