My Dad always says, "Health is something everyone takes for granted until it's taken away." We've probably all had an experience in life that leads us to be more appreciative of our health, whether it's the pain of a paper cut or something much deeper. A few weeks ago our community kicked off our Healthy Kingsport movement. It was a week designed to focus our community on Healthy Living...eating right, exercising more, and not smoking. We did this in many ways from a community kick-off on Monday to a Walk for Wellness on Saturday and many activities in between. Why did we do it? We did it because we are a community who cares about one another. A community that wants to fight back and take care of ourselves, our family members, our children, and our neighbors so that they can have a better chance to live long and productive lives.  

At United Way, we often talk about our three building blocks to a good life of Education, Income and Health. Our organization, and many others in our community, helped develop the principals upon which Healthy Kingsport was built. We are proud to play a small role in the launch of this important movement. Using a model called Collective Impact, we have been growing in our knowledge and collaboration with many organizations across our community including the YMCA, Kingsport Tomorrow, local healthcare organizations, the Health Department, our schools, our city, large employers, community volunteers, and many more. We are excited to be a part of this positive community initiative that raises awareness of a serious challenge facing us. Tennessee is one of the least healthy states in the nation, and we have been for a while now. Because of our unhealthy habits, we are now facing an epidemic of preventable chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and certain types of cancer. But, we can make a difference.

So, during this month where we celebrate our volunteers, I hope you will join the Healthy Kingsport movement and learn more about the facts at http://www.healthykingsport.org.  

You can do this as an individual by making a commitment for small starts towards healthier behaviors for yourself and your family (eating right, exercising more and decreasing tobacco use.) You can do this as well by joining "Small Starts" -- an app that is available to download http://healthiertn.com/small_starts. As a workplace, you and co-workers can register at http://healthiertn.com/small_starts_at_work. Thank you for being a caring part of our community focused on improving lives!

See you on the Greenbelt!

Live United,

Executive Director