The Dakota County Board of Commissioners presented the 2025 Public Health Achievement Awards to three recipients Tuesday, May 6 in celebration of National Public Health Week. The winners are the LiveGreen Clubs, Ann Bailey and The Open Door.
The LiveGreen Clubs of the West St. Paul, Mendota Heights and Eagan Area School District received the youth award. The district's sustainability program was established in 2003 and is at all eight schools. Students in LiveGreen lead projects focused on environmental health and natural resource protection. Projects include a drain stormwater protection, litter cleanups, school forests, native prairies and vegetable gardens.
Ann Bailey, the individual award winner, is a longtime resident of Apple Valley. She's the current and retiring president of DARTS, a nonprofit in West St. Paul. Bailey's connection to DARTS and the field of aging, began when she became the primary caregiver for her father after his dementia diagnosis. Bailey advocated for programs like Tech Buddies, which pairs older adults with tech-savvy volunteers, a caregiver respite program called The Breathing Space and Café y Conversaciones, a free social hour for Spanish-speakers over age 60. Bailey belongs to the Dakota County Nonprofit Leadership Group, where she mentors and works with other nonprofit leaders.
The Open Door, the group award winner, is focused on ending local hunger through access to healthy food. The Open Door serves more than 15,000 Dakota County residents each month and distributes more than 3 million pounds of food annually, 70 percent of which is fresh and perishable. The Open Door's Pop-Up Pantry program brings food to clients where they live. The Farmington pantry served 1,580 families in 2024. It's in downtown Farmington, near two income-restricted apartments for seniors and people with disabilities. “With no grocery store in Farmington, this is critical for our community and neighbors who don't or can't drive," said Kellee Omlid of the City of Farmington.
The county board established Public Health Achievement Awards in 2000 to recognize residents who devote their time, energy and talents to create a healthy future for Dakota County residents.