Youngstown City Health District Commissioner Erin Bishop and health educator and doula Jamica Graham manage the district’s booth at the Infant Vitality Block Party on Saturday at Wick Park in Youngstown. Correspondent photos / Susan Wojnar

YOUNGSTOWN — September is Infant Mortality Awareness Month, and the Infant Vitality Block Party brought that awareness home to the Youngstown area Saturday in Wick Park. The Greater Youngstown Community Dialogue On Racism hosted the event.

Jon Paul Robles, director of GYCDOR, said the event used to use the phrase “infant mortality,” but switched to “infant vitality” in order to reframe and focus on how the city and its residents can have healthy pregnancies, healthy moms, healthy families and healthy birth outcomes.

The gathering addressed a serious need in Mahoning County, which continues to have a high infant mortality rate. According to the Centers for Disease Control, Ohio has an infant mortality rate of 7.1 deaths for every 1,000 births, which is higher than the national average of 5.6 deaths per 1,000 births.

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