HIO Launches Step by Step Winter Community Wellness Initiative
January 10, 2012
Jackson, Mich. — Step by Step is a community wellness campaign developed by the Health Improvement Organization (HIO) to address some of the largest health issues facing Jackson County: healthy eating, physical activity, smoking and stress.
/2011_News_Releases/winter-wellness-challenge.jpeg "Sign up for the Winter Wellness Challenge")
The HIO wanted to launch Step by Step in Jackson County to help people understand what the issues are, and more importantly what they can do about them, using local resources to live healthier. Step by Step is all about helping community members with small steps everyone can take to live healthy so that we can all help make Jackson a healthier, more vibrant place to live, work and play.
There will be events and activities happening all over our area over the next three years that will help put tools in people’s hands to reinforce the initiative’s messages: eat better, move more, stress less and live smoke-free.
Starting in January, community members can sign up for the Winter Community Wellness Challenge. The Challenge will run for three months and is set up for people to participate on their own or as part of a team.
To provide ongoing support and resources, Step by Step includes MyStepByStep.org, an interactive web site with tips about eating more fruits and vegetables, moving more, living smoke-free and managing stress. Community members can register to get tips, updates, and to have a place where they can track their own progress.
In addition to opportunities for participants to share comments, the site includes blogs and testimonials, postings of community events and more ways to help people connect. The site is also connected to Facebook and Twitter.
The first Step by Step Community Wellness Challenge kicked off in April of 2011. During the six month challenge, 3,341 individuals were registered. Ninety Michigan cities were represented, spanning 17 counties and 76 teams were created.
The HIO was founded by Allegiance Health in 2000 and has since grown to include more than 30 community stakeholders including United Way of Jackson County, Jackson County Administration (especially the health department), the schools, mental health agencies, numerous non-profit organizations, the faith community, local businesses and other community stakeholders.
For more information, visit MyStepByStep.org or call 780-7306.