During the first six months of 1982 The Institute on Man and Science in Rensselaerville, New York conducted a health concerns and health education needs assessment in a rural area spanning three counties and involving 11,000 households. The methodologies used by the project team to identify the most basic and urgent health needs not being met through established channels, and to plan for preventive health promotion programs that might meet these needs are outlined. The structure and outcomes of a community workshop for grass roots residents and professionals, “Self-care for Health: Can it Work Here?,” are reported. The results of subsequent program development and fundraising efforts were capsulized at the American Rural Health Association meeting in June, 1983.