Wichita’s neighborhoods are getting a fresh boost thanks to a city-funded, community-led effort managed by Wichita State University’s Community Engagement Institute.
Through the Healthy Corner Store Initiative (HCSI), Wichita State’s Center for Public Health Initiatives works alongside small store owners, local growers and neighborhood organizations to expand access to affordable, healthy and culturally familiar foods in areas that need them most.
The City of Wichita launched the initiative using a $950,000 American Rescue Plan Act grant, selecting Wichita State through a competitive process to manage the program. CEI oversees the budget and helps stores add new produce and healthy items with the goal of improving food access and strengthening Wichita’s food economy.
“Corner stores are already part of the community,” said Joanna Sabally, project manager with the Center for Public Health Initiatives. “By helping these businesses expand their inventory with fresh, nutritious foods, we can make a real difference in food access, one neighborhood at a time.”
The program relies on engaged partners like Mr. Mc’s Market, a long-time Wichita business that serves as both a recruiter and distributor for the initiative.
Currently, the HCSI includes five stores:
- Mr. Mc’s Market, 1901 E. 21st Street North
- Nelson’s Market, 1702 E. Morris Street
- Shakey Jakes, 2412 E. 17th Street North
- Happy Grocery, 1343 N. Hillside Street
- 21 Smoke Shop, 2211 N. Grove Street
Two additional stores are in the onboarding process:
- KC Gas and Grocery, 1102 W. Maple Street
- MD’s Kwike Mart, 4628 S. Seneca Street
“The Healthy Corner Store Initiative was a perfect match for what we were already doing,” said Alicia Broomfield, CEO of Mr. Mc’s Market. “We’d been wholesaling produce to smaller stores, and this gave us a way to strengthen that network and help more families find fresh food right in their own neighborhood.”
Each participating store starts small by adding just six new healthy items from an approved product list and can eventually receive equipment, training and marketing support. Local organizations such as Salud + Bienestar, ICT Treehuggers and Richard Robinson CBA serve as neighborhood liaisons to promote the effort through their networks.
Since its launch in late 2024, five stores have joined the initiative: Mr. Mc’s Market, Nelson’s Market, Shakey Jake’s, Happy Grocery and 21 Smoke Shop. Between May and August 2025, the program supported more than $29,000 in produce distributed through corner stores and $63,000 through Mr. Mc’s farm stands in local neighborhoods.
Though city funding runs through 2026, Sabally said sustainability remains a top priority.
“We’re working with business owners who care about their neighborhoods and want to keep offering fresh, healthy food,” she said. “That’s the kind of change that lasts.”
About Wichita State University
Wichita State University is Kansas' only urban public research university, enrolling more than 25,000 students between its main campus and the WSU Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology (WSU Tech), including students from every state in the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Wichita State and WSU Tech are recognized for being student-centered and innovation-driven.
Located in the largest city in the state with one of the highest concentrations in the United States of jobs involving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), Wichita State University provides uniquely distinctive and innovative pathways of applied learning, applied research and career opportunities for all of our students. The National Science Foundation ranked WSU No. 1 in the nation for aerospace engineering R&D, No. 2 for industry-funded engineering R&D and No. 8 overall for engineering R&D.
The Innovation Campus, which is a physical extension of the Wichita State University main campus, is one of the nation’s largest and fastest-growing research/innovation parks, encompassing over 120 acres and is home to a number of global companies and organizations.
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