Slathering Santa Cruz with Sun Safe Initiatives
IMPACT Melanoma is proud of the work we do in communities throughout the United States. The following is a conversation with Haven Parker, a Leads for America Fellow as well as the Special Projects Manager for Santa Cruz County Parks Department. Haven reached out to IMPACT to figure out how Santa Cruz could obtain sunscreen dispensers for Santa Cruz.
Currently three dispensers are installed as part of IMPACT’s Safe Skin at Work Initiative inviting city park and maintenance crews to practice safe skin, and two are installed in public areas including the Simpkins Family Swim Center. Stemming from the success of this initial wave (which took place in 2019), we’re now working closely with Haven to figure out the best way to expand the Practice Safe Skin program in 2020 throughout the city. The program will enable Santa Cruz to add more sunscreen dispensing resources and put a focus on further education initiatives within the community to address the ill effects of UV radiation stemming from the sun.
We were glad to help facilitate this and are proud of our community engagement programs and in working together to make great IMPACT nationwide.
IMPACT Melanoma: How’d you learn about these dispensers and of IMPACT Melanoma?
Haven Parker: I am a fellow for the national organization, Lead for America, a nonprofit that puts young leaders back in their hometown local governments to effect change. Fellowship training occurred in Boston, Massachusetts, and featured a tour of the parks in the city. I saw an IMPACT Melanoma sunscreen dispenser along one of the city’s park trails and thought it was a great idea! I was immediately interested in the organization and excited to bring dispensers back to my hometown as a fellowship project.
IM: What made you/Santa Cruz want to get engaged with them and bring them to your community?
HP: Santa Cruz County has a very high incidence rate of melanoma. As a community tightly connected with the outdoors through surfing, hiking, and biking, many people are affected by skin cancer every year. My mother passed away two years ago from melanoma, less than a month after her diagnosis. I think that around here dermatologist visits get a good amount of priority, but prevention is where healthy skin practices should start! I would love it if all the groms and the old hippies around Santa Cruz were aware of what they can do to protect their skin while still enjoying the awesome recreation that the county has to offer.
IM: According to my notes you acquired five total dispensers. Tell us about where they are exactly and who they’re serving. How were these locations chosen?
HP: Currently, three of the dispensers are operating entirely under IMPACT Melanoma’s “Safe Skin at Work” initiative. These three are placed in our Parks maintenance workers’ shops at three of our parks (Pinto Lake County Park, Highlands County Park, and Emeline Campus) along with signage to encourage sunscreen use. Our maintenance workers spend a lot of time in our parks under direct sunlight, and all of them check in to the locations of these dispensers daily.
The other two sunscreen dispensers are accessible to both the public and County Parks workers. One is placed at our department’s headquarters, the Simpkins Family Swim Center. Our lifeguards have been trained on the dispensers along with the importance of lathering up! So far, the public has been very appreciative of a sunscreen dispenser situated directly outside of the locker rooms. Another sunscreen dispenser is at Polo Grounds County Park attached to a snack shack that is frequented by soccer players and dog walkers alike.
IM: Do you have any applicable sponsors you’d like to call out with regards to the sunscreen dispensers?
HP: Thus far, Santa Cruz County Parks has taken on the cost of sunscreen dispensers and sunscreen. We would like to begin sponsorship relationships with some of the medical care groups around here, such as Kaiser Permanente and Dignity Health, as well as companies with ties to Santa Cruz County, such as O’Neill, Netflix, and Looker. O’Neill already does great work within the county to provide dermatologist checks to community members.
IM: Let’s learn more about your sun safe program! What role will IMPACT play in bolstering that initiative?
HP: Our sun safety program is largely centered around IMPACT Melanoma’s curriculum and materials. An IMPACT Melanoma sun safety presentation was given at our employee “all hands” meeting in October. There, sunscreen dispensers were introduced as part of the “Safe Skin at Work” program. Maintenance workers, recreation staff, and lifeguards are encouraged to use the sunscreen dispensers as often as possible.
Our “Practice Safe Skin” programming is in its early stages with two public-facing dispensers in county parks, but our department is working with IMPACT Melanoma to develop community sponsorships to get more dispensers for our park visitors. The dispensers are a great way to facilitate safe skin programming. Our Junior Pool Lifeguards Program meets at Simpkins Family Swim Center (where one dispenser is up and running). Sun safety education and materials provided by IMPACT Melanoma will be factored into the program’s curriculum, and the dispenser will be a key stop for the little Pool Junior Lifeguards before jumping in this summer! With sponsors and community support, we are hoping to get sunscreen dispensers and educational signs placed at our beach access parks, so that beachgoers and surfers will be able to use them.
IM: What, in your estimation is the importance of having these dispensers in place? Feel free to share any personal experiences with combating the suns UV rays, etc.
HP: People who live in or visit Santa Cruz County are drawn by a love of nature. IMPACT Melanoma’s dispensers provide a safe way to continue the lifestyle that makes our county so unique. Encouraging people to take steps to protect their skin should be a key step for any organization that facilitates outdoor recreation in our area.
The weather in Santa Cruz County is relatively unpredictable. Most of the time when the sun breaks through the thick fog bank that usually blankets the coast, you are woefully unprepared. Surfing is a favorite past time of our community, and most surfers won’t turn away from a good swell just because they forgot their sunscreen. Having convenient, outdoor dispensers of free sunscreen will mean a lot to this area and the steps that people will take to protect their skin. Additionally, our surfing community prides itself on being environmentally conscious, so IMPACT Melanoma’s planned development of reef safe sunscreen was a huge draw for us.
IM: What sort of IMPACT does this project leave on your community and what are next steps in assuring that they are properly utilized and taken advantage of?
HP: This Santa Cruz County Parks project will bring the community into the nationwide conversation around melanoma. I wish that my mom would have had access to a similar skin safety program growing up, so it is very encouraging to know that organizations like IMPACT Melanoma exist and can provide that to other people. Already, through our work with IMPACT Melanoma, we are conversing with dermatologists and other nonprofits that have other ideas for sun safety in county parks, such as shade structures and guest speakers.
I think that a common attitude towards skin safety among adults in Santa Cruz County is that it’s too late to protect their skin. One of our maintenance worker’s reactions to the statistics presented about sunburns and melanoma was, “Well, I’m screwed.” An approach that would benefit the community most would be to appeal to all ages with a message that says it’s not too late to start protecting your skin.
IM: What’s your battle cry sound like with regard to getting surrounding communities in your area, and across the globe, to adopt a similar proactive approach to helping combat skin cancer with these dispensing devices?
HP: People want free sunscreen in their parks! They just might not know that it is an option. Every single person has experience with skin cancer in some form in their lives, so why not start a conversation around it? The sunscreen dispensers have opened up a dialogue about skin cancer in a relaxed setting that can bring about real changes in habits.
IM: What does it mean to you that this type of organization (IMPACT) exists?
HP: I am so happy that I learned about IMPACT Melanoma, because the individuals who I have met with and coordinated programs with are truly great supports personally and professionally. I did not expect to have such a personal connection with board member Tracy Cockerham. She has lived in Santa Cruz, and like me, she has lost a close family member to melanoma. Tracy not only went out of her way to help get sunscreen dispensers to Santa Cruz County Parks, but she has also checked in with me and had genuine conversations with me about the loss of my mom. It means a lot to work with real people with real stories like mine. Everyone I have spoken to at IMPACT Melanoma is so excited to help and really cares about the organization’s mission.
For a long time, I felt so angry and lost in this fight against something that most people just shrug their shoulders about and decide to risk, so I am very thankful to IMPACT Melanoma for giving me a clear path to helping.
Get involved: To bring IMPACT Melanoma’s award winning programs (which include our ever popular sunscreen dispensers) to your town/community, contact IMPACT Melanoma today and let’s discuss how we can help best serve your unique needs.
