Health & Fitness

Self-proclaimed workaholic Bob Lissner was looking for a place to share his experience and abilities after retiring from his position as the founder of Lifestyle Homes. He found that and more at Northern Nevada HOPES, where he has been volunteering for many years.

“I believe in their mission,” he says. “They’re providing medical care for people who wouldn’t otherwise have access.”

If you are feeling anxious, overwhelmed, stressed, sad or even angry about coronavirus, you are not alone. We have all been affected in some way. Coronavirus is a global phenomenon, and Reno/Sparks, Nevada is not an exception. In a short span of time, our “normal” at home, school and in our community has changed.

Any change requires an adjustment. Abrupt change, like what we face with coronavirus, can lead to a rollercoaster of painful emotions. That is why we are sharing with you our top five things to do to stay positive during these trying times.

For many, the global pandemic has been a crisis “perfect storm” — economic struggles, fears about health and personal challenges all coming together at the same point in time, resulting in unmatched emotional and physical turbulence.

I just got off a two-hour video conference “party” with 11 people and a dog named Cooper.

The party was in honor of a friend’s birthday, which fell — quite inconveniently — during a time of necessary social distancing.

As our community continues to adapt to the daily changes and challenges resulting from the Coronavirus, Catholic Charities of Northern Nevada continues to serve some of the area’s most vulnerable populations.

How can you eat nutritious, affordable meals when the nearest grocery store is two miles away and you don’t have a car? That is the question that ate away at Shannon Dobbs during the 11 years he and wife Michelle owned a bar in downtown Reno.

As members of the downtown community, they watched friends and acquaintances who were downtown residents suffer without access to fresh, nutritious food — growing ill, getting chronic diseases and dying too young.

On Tuesday, Jan. 28, the Reno Events Center will transform into a hub where dozens of local service providers can help people who are facing homelessness, or who are homeless, find medical care, social services, housing aid, quality of life care and much more.

Held annually, Project Homeless and Family Connect brings those experiencing or facing homelessness together with free services. This effective, organized effort to coordinate services is part of a nationwide best practice and is held in more than 200 communities around the world each year.

As an energy engineer, and Bhakti yoga teacher, Priya Dey-Sarkar’s life may at first glance seem at odds with itself. But she only sees how connected it all is. “No matter what I do, I work with energy — helping it flow from point A to point B,” Dey-Sarkar explains.

When Heidi Parker was a new mother 18 years ago, her health plan didn’t cover all of her child’s vaccinations. But she was persistent and committed to ensuring her child’s health. Eventually she was able to get her son all the immunizations he needed at the Washoe County Health District.