Health Care Advocates Find Unity At Networking Event In Newark: 'All Of Us, Together'

NEWARK, NJ — Nearly 100 health care and political community leaders recently gathered to discuss potential solutions for racial disparities at an annual networking breakfast in Newark.

CareSparc Community Connections hosted their fourth annual event – “The Future of Community Health: A Strategic Exchange” – at the New Jersey Institute of Technology last month.

The goal? To identify challenges and potential solutions involving health care, food insecurity and health in Black and brown communities.

Some recommendations included:

• Improving access to health screenings
• Increasing preventative care
• Raising awareness of crucial health and wellness resources
• “Meeting people where they are” in their communities

The event included a message from U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, who citing the nonprofit’s fresh produce initiatives for seniors and families and its Sustainable Health and Wellness Village Tour as “life changing” initiatives that advance health equity outcomes in Black and brown communities in New Jersey.

The senator added that “access to health care is a fundamental right and we need all federal and state policies to reflect that commitment.”

The breakfast also featured guest speaker Adam Taliaferro, Director of State and Community Engagement at Johnson & Johnson, a sponsor of the Sustainable Health and Wellness Village Festival. Speaking from his personal experience and as that of a former legislator, Taliaferro focused on the importance of access to health care – and the necessity of collaboration between multiple stakeholders to achieve that goal.

Heather Thompson, executive director of Table to Table, was among the community leaders who participated in the event.

Thompson pointed to a collaboration with CareSparc to support food security in Essex County as an example of multiple groups teaming up to make positive change.

“So far in 2025 we’ve delivered nearly 100,000 pounds of wholesome fruits and vegetables to CareSparc’s Free Fresh Produce markets – together creating nutrition security and better health for hundreds of seniors and other neighbors who are struggling to make ends meet,” Thompson said.

Other community leaders in attendance included Newark City Council Chairman Larry Crump; Jonathan Graham, President, Horus Construction Services, Ruthi Zinn Byrne, Founder Zinn Graves and Field; Amir Jones, Essex County Sheriff; Thomas Burke, Chief Administrative Officer of Clara Maass Medical Center, Leslie Hirsch, President and CEO of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, RWJ Barnabas Health Clara Maass Medical Center; Ketlen Alsbrook, CEO and Director, Newark Department of Community Wellness, Dr. Ana Natale Pereira, Division Director, Rutgers Health NJ Medical School and Christian Ragland, Assistant Vice President DEI, AtlantiCare.

“The future of community health won’t be built by any single institution,” urged Dr. Sherri Johnson, the breakfast host and moderator.

“It will be shaped by all of us, together,” Johnson added.

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