Nov 19, 2019 | News
What do you get when you take a healthy eating, active living conference to the Pee Dee? You get the largest gathering of public health and community coalition partners ever!
With more than 219 people in attendance, Florence and the Pee Dee were the hosts of the 2019 Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities, and it did not disappoint! More than half of those in attendance (56%) were there for the first time, and the Pee Dee accounted for 31 percent of the audience with organizations having a statewide presence coming in at the top at 33 percent.
“A few of our goals in having the Summit in Florence was to reach communities in the Pee Dee, spotlight their work through some of the breakout sessions, and to broaden our reach across the state,” said Meg Stanley, executive director at Eat Smart Move More South Carolina. “We are very pleased to have met our goals, and we look forward to partnering with not just those in the Pee Dee, but with all of our new and existing partners to reduce obesity and chronic disease rates in South Carolina.”
Out of the 15 breakout sessions offered, four sessions focused on healthy eating and active living initiatives happening in the Pee Dee region. All other breakout sessions addressed strategies that can be duplicated in any area of the state – whether partially or completely. One of the most popular breakout sessions came from Growing COB (Calhoun, Orangeburg, Bamberg), a community coalition that has successfully built and sustained community gardens in the rural, underserved tri-county area through partnerships and leveraging resources.
One attendee said, “Excellent work. The information shared and photos provided makes it evident that Growing COB is an effective program. This presentation has indeed sparked great interest for me to advocate for community garden opportunities! I was truly blessed as well as inspired by such a worthwhile and much needed opportunity for communities to thrive!!!”
Evaluation is a key component in any project and event of this magnitude. Along with the Leadership Summit Planning Committee, ESMMSC will use the collected data to plan future Summits, ensure event content aligns with the needs of the community, and better communicate with our partners and community coalitions. The information will also be used to plan webinars and other opportunities throughout the year.
What topics can you look forward to seeing during a webinar, workshop, or future Leadership Summit? Those surveyed said Funding and Leveraging Resources, Youth Engagement, and Capacity Building. The 2020 Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities date and location will be announced soon. Keep your eyes open and be ready to mark your calendar!
Nov 11, 2019 | News
Thirty-two schools across South Carolina have been named to the 2019 list of America’s Healthiest Schools by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, receiving national recognition for their commitment to students’ health and well-being.
A total of 355 schools nationwide were selected based on a rigorous set of criteria—from availability of nutritious foods to access to quality physical education opportunities—as part of Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program. South Carolina tied with Missouri for the 4th highest number of award-winning schools, with 4 schools receiving the National Healthy Schools Silver Award and 28 receiving the National Healthy Schools Bronze Award.
“Achievement of this award demonstrates the commitment of these schools to promoting the well-being of students, staff, and families, as well as, their understanding of the importance of wellness to student and school success,” said, Beth Barry, Senior Program Manager, SC for the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. “The support of district and school administrators, school wellness leaders and teams, and community engagement are significant factors in becoming one of America’s Healthiest Schools.”
All of America’s Healthiest Schools have earned National Healthy Schools Awards, a prestigious achievement that celebrates schools that meet or exceed expert-recommended standards set by Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program for serving healthier meals and snacks, getting students moving more, offering high-quality health and physical education, and supporting staff wellness.
“We are thrilled to see another strong showing of dedicated schools that are taking steps to create healthier school environments that support children’s physical, social, and emotional health,” said Kathy Higgins, chief executive officer at the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. “More than a decade ago, we sought to help schools create a culture of health that puts the well-being of youth and educators front and center. We are blown away by the number of schools, especially those serving youth from underserved communities, that doubled down on their commitment to health and academic success. This year’s list is a continued testament to the nationwide movement for improving the social, emotional and physical health of current and future generations.”
Any school can join Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program to access trainings, resources, and technical assistance by visiting HealthierGeneration.org.
To view the complete list of America’s Healthiest Schools, visit HealthiestSchools.org.
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation believes every child deserves a healthy future. For over a decade, Healthier Generation has empowered kids to develop lifelong healthy habits by ensuring the environments that surround them provide and promote good health. Driven by our passion that all young people deserve a chance to live healthier lives, our work, in total, has reached up to 28 million kids across the country. To learn more and help make a difference, visit Healthier Generation.org and join us on Facebook and Twitter.
Oct 4, 2019 | News
Many communities across South Carolina are experiencing success in changing built environments into active community environments that promote active lifestyles, and in doing so have seen economic and fiscal benefits. Active community environments are places where people of all ages and abilities can be physically active for both recreation and transportation purposes.
At the Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities on October 29 in Florence, participants can learn about active community environment strategies happening in rural areas of the state. Whether it’s improved sidewalks, bicycle-friendly sharrows, and multi-use paths and trails or adopting open community use policies, Leadership Summit participants will gain a clear picture of how creating active community environments can benefit everyone.
Building Multi-Sector Support for Active Community Environments in Lancaster County, South Carolina
The ESMM Lancaster County chapter has built public and private support for a variety of active living and built environment policies in the rapidly growing area. Presenters will share a variety of policy-based strategies that are currently being implemented to increase physical activity opportunities throughout Lancaster County. You will learn about the challenges of managing both the rural and suburban resident expectations of municipal recreation facilities and how strategies change the built environment.
Where There’s a Will There’s a Way (To Funding Your Trail)
Communities in coastal South Carolina have found a wide variety of ways to fund transformative, beloved sections of the East Coast Greenway. Learn how small rural towns and major metropolitan areas have leveraged abandoned rail lines, private philanthropy, Forest Service roads, and federal transportation dollars to build unique, safe places for physical activity in the Lowcountry. You will find out about public and private funding options, what’s involved in accessing these types of funds, and strategies for creating multi-use trails.
Register for these sessions at the Leadership Summit today! Click here to register!
Sep 24, 2019 | News
For the past three years, Eat Smart Move More South Carolina has honored individuals with the Community Leader Award to showcase those who go above and beyond to make their communities healthier places to live, learn, work, play, and pray. Being a community leader doesn’t require a master’s degree, an executive-level title, or a position of high visibility and public service. A true community leader can be found in the field getting their hands dirty and ensuring positive changes happen within the scope of work.
This year, six individuals, who were nominated by their peers, have been chosen to receive the Community Leader Award. Each person has characteristics deserving of the award, including vision, confidence, integrity, adaptability, and courage. ESMMSC is proud to honor the following six individuals and honor them at the Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities on October 29th at the Florence Center.
Jessica Cody, Eat Smart Move More York County, Fort Mill, SC
In York County, Jessica Cody is working to create a lasting impact on the lives of children and families in Fort Mill through Atrium Health’s Healthy Together 5210 program, which supports a culture of health through engagement, consistent messaging, collaboration, education, and policy changes within schools and childcare centers. She was Eat Smart Move More York County’s Coalition Coach during their three-year Let’s Go South Carolina grant, and played a large role at the Catawba Fresh Market.
Danielle Parker, Northeastern Rural Health Network, Bennettsville, SC
Danielle Parker serves as a Community Health Worker servicing Dillon, Marlboro, and Chesterfield Counties. Her time is spent traveling throughout the service area providing nutrition education to communities of faith and assisting with policy, systems, and environmental changes.
Janet Wojcik, Ph.D., FACSM, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC
Janet R. Wojcik makes substantive contributions to the York County community through her professional, volunteer and personal efforts. At Winthrop University, she is Associate Professor and Program Director in the Exercise Science program in the Department of Physical Education, Sport, and Human Performance. She’s also active on the Eat Smart Move More South Carolina coalition.
Kerry McKenzie, MS, Bradshaw Institute, Greenville, SC
Kerry McKenzie is a Special Project Coordinator at the Prisma Health-Upstate Bradshaw Institute for Community Child Health & Advocacy in Greenville, SC. Her focus is on childhood obesity prevention in the early childhood sector, specifically Head Start Centers in Greenville, Pickens, and Oconee counties. She’s also a Choosy Kids National Trainer for the Head Start initiative I Am Moving, I Am Learning, as well as a special projects consultant and contributor. Kerry is also the creator of Grow to Greatness, a health and wellness program for young children and their families.
Nancy Myers, Hartsville Community Garden, Hartsville, SC
Hartsville gardening enthusiast Nancy Myers has done many things in the community but her role as founder and director of the Hartsville Community Garden has made her a community leader. Nancy’s efforts have far exceeded the primary health issue of increasing access to healthy food. Her work includes engaging the community, connecting neighbors, and educating youth.
Pastor Lou Esther Brown, Northeastern Rural Health Network, Cheraw, SC
Pastor Lou Esther Brown is a faith leader in Cheraw and has been critical with connecting the Northeastern Rural Health Network to the faith community using the Faithful Families Thriving Communities Program in Chesterfield County, SC. She has been a champion for the organization and serves on the Healthy People Healthy Carolinas workgroup that addresses obesity prevention.
The Community Leaders Awards will be presented during a luncheon at the Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities on October 29th at the Florence Center. Register today for the Leadership Summit!
The Community Leader Awards are presented by HopeHealth, a patient-centered medical home with a focus on preventing and detecting illness and the early onset of disease, providing routine physical examinations, and promoting overall healthy lifestyles.
The Community Leader Awards Luncheon is sponsored by the City of Florence.
Sep 19, 2019 | News
It’s no secret that the South is the Bible Belt of the country, an informal region in religion that plays a strong role in the daily lives of millions of people. It’s also a known fact that church attendance across the South is generally higher than the nation’s average, making healthy change more tangible. That’s why faith-based healthy eating and active living strategies are important pieces of Eat Smart Move More South Carolina’s (ESMMSC) work.
At the Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities, faith-based breakout sessions are almost always included on the agenda to give communities ideas on how to make their places of worship healthier environments, and this year is no different. On October 29 in Florence, Leadership Summit attendees have three opportunities to learn about current work being done in South Carolina that can be duplicated in their own faith-based communities.
- Engaging Youth as Partners in Healthy Eating and Active Living: A Panel Discussion. During this session, three rural communities will share their successes in implementing The HYPE Project. Melissa Buckner, adult advisor for St. Peter’s AME Church in Walterboro, SC, has helped teens implement policy changes at the church through a grant provided by the Young People’s Division (YPD) of the 7th District AME Church and ESMMSC. Other speakers who are implementing The HYPE Project through other grant opportunities are Calvin Whitmire of Bridging the Gap Advocacy in Laurens and Mary Kayrouz of United Way of Anderson.
- Grassroots Approaches to Increasing Healthy Food Access in Rural and Low-Income Areas. In Orangeburg, Growing Calhoun Orangeburg and Calhoun (COB) have been highly successful with community gardens and supply low-income families with free produce. Growing COB has done this by working with local churches and other partners to create and maintain the gardens.
- The Power of the Pulpit. LiveWell Greenville has achieved success with their LiveWell at Worship program. Margaret Stephens will talk about how LiveWell Greenville has effectively engaged with faith communities – something that isn’t always achievable. She will also explain the LiveWell at Worship program, and why relationship building is a necessary step in achieving success within the faith-based community.
To attend these sessions, register for the Leadership Summit for Healthy Communities by October 16th. The Leadership Summit will be on October 29 at the Florence Center in Florence, SC.
ESMMSC Work in Faith-Based Communities
Through professional development opportunities, like the Leadership Summit, community and faith leaders can establish working relationships with other leaders around the state and learn how to implement healthy change in their faith-based communities.
Faith, Activity, and Nutrition
Earlier this year, ESMMSC partnered with the Prevention Research Center at the University of South Carolina to host a Faith, Activity, and Nutrition (FAN) Train the Trainer workshop. Twenty-six individuals from around the state became Community Health Advisors to teach the FAN program in their communities. Recently, Eat Smart Move More Kershaw County hosted the FAN training. After educating more than 120 churches on the FAN concept, representatives from 14 churches learned how to implement the FAN program. Now that church leaders are implementing changes, ESMM Kershaw County will bring everyone together in the fall to discuss success and challenges.
The HYPE YPD Project
Fourteen YPDs of the 7th District AME Church received a grant from ESMMSC to learn the curriculum-based HYPE Project and to implement healthy eating and active living strategies at their church and within their communities. Each church received up to $800.00 to work on one policy change and one church- or community-based project.
The HYPE YPD teams used the FAN policy planning guide to advocate for policies at their churches, such as removing salt shakers from tables; offering water, fruit, and vegetables at church functions that serve food; scheduling physical activity breaks during services and meetings; and eliminating fried foods. In addition to these policies, HYPE YPD teams are creating gardens and walking paths, advocating for roadway signs, and educating church members on healthy eating and active living.
If your church is a member of the 7th District AME Church and you would like your YDP to get involved in The HYPE Project, grant opportunities will become available through ESMMSC soon. Contact Trimease Carter, youth engagement manager, at trimease@eatsmartmovemoresc.org about this opportunity. You can also apply for a Let’s Go! mini-grant in January 2020. Visit esmmsc.org for more information.
Sep 9, 2019 | News
Rail trails have become popular amenities for municipalities and users over the years, and Florence is no exception. Just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Florence Center and the Hampton Inn is the Florence Rail Trail, a close to 5-mile paved trail frequented by locals and visitors alike.
As our returning Summit attendees know, we provide time for physical activity before, during, and after the Summit.
- For attendees staying overnight at the Hampton Inn, we encourage you to pack your running or walking gear and take advantage of the scenic and peaceful Rail Trail.
- Summit attendees will have an opportunity to break for optional physical activities like yoga, line dancing, and walking at your own pace. The Florence Rail Trail can be accessed through Veterans’ Park, located next to the Florence Center’s parking lot.
- If you want to wait until after the Summit to get a good afternoon run in, we encourage you to do to just that!
The Florence Rail Trail extends takes you through residential neighborhoods, under busy lanes of traffic, and by businesses of all types. It’s a popular trail that truly provides access to Florence for all types of travelers and physical activity enthusiasts.
