The 2009 Health Summit did exactly what it was supposed to do: bring a diverse group of Sitkans together to celebrate and increase our community’s health. The dinner was the highlight this year. Not only was the menu fantastic, but each of the Community Wellness Champions that were honored added something special to the evening -- whether is was a moving story, a heartfelt “Thank You” or a good joke!

At the planning workshop the next day, Keynote speaker Judd Allen challenged participants to look at Sitka through a cultural lens. Strategies were developed that applied the principles of cultural change to the health and wellness initiatives that exist in our community.

 

	Keynote Speaker Judd Allen Dr. Allen is President of the Human Resources Institute, LLC, a research, publishing and consulting firm that focuses on the creation of supportive cultural environments. He earned his Ph.D. in Community Psychology from New York University. Judd teaches at Nebraska Methodist College and serves on the editorial board of the American Journal of Health Promotion. Dr. Allen is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Wellness Institute. He is also a trustee of Perhaps Kids Meeting Kids Will Make a Difference. Dr. Allen was a Senior Research Analyst at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and served on the Vermont Governor’s Council for Physical Fitness and Sports. Dr. Allen has assisted several hundred government, business and community settings to bring about lasting and positive culture change. He has authored more than 50 books, journal articles, training manuals and software titles. His most recent books are Healthy Habits, Helpful Friends and Wellness Leadership. In addition, he is featured in a number of videos about leadership, peer support, mentoring and the creation of a healthy work climate. Judd has completed more than 20 consecutive New York City Marathons, multiple Ironman distance triathlons and long distance cross-country ski races. He lives in Burlington, Vermont, with his wife and four year old daughter.
Judd Allen will speak on the topics of: The importance of creating a culture of health, The elements of culture including shared values, norms, cultural touch points, peer support and climate. The role of leadership and peer support in bringing about culture change Success stories
More information about Judd Allen can be found at his website: http://www.healthyculture.com/

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Physical Activity

• Dorothy Orbison — honored for her work leading the Strong and Steady group that meets twice a week at the Swan Lake Senior Center. Dorothy is a certified fitness trainer, and her work helps seniors improve their balance, strength, flexibility and general well-being.
• Sitka Skippers — honored for helping young people stay fit through the sport of jump rope. Members of the Sitka Skippers have done well in national competition and the team recently hosted a statewide meet here in Sitka. This group is led by Twila Keaveny.

Nutrition

• Florence Welsh — honored for the Welsh Family Forget-Me-Not Gardens, which is one family’s way to eat more local foods. The Welsh family shares extra produce with neighbors and friends, and teachers frequently bring student field trips to the gardens so students can learn more about growing their food.
• Sitka Local Foods Network — honored for expanding Sitka’s community gardens with the building in 2008 of the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm and adding of new garden beds at the Blatchley Community Garden, for working on a plan to build a Sitka Community Greenhouse, and for starting the Sitka Farmers Market with three markets in 2008 and six scheduled for 2009. This group is led by Linda Wilson and Kerry MacLane.

Tobacco Prevention and Control

• Ryan Kauffman — honored for his work with the Sitka School District to educate young students about the dangers of tobacco and helping those who already have started get the support they need to quit before they get totally hooked.
• Sitka Elks Lodge No. 1662 — honored for choosing to pass its own clean indoor air policy in 2006 so that kids could continue to participate in club functions. Private clubs, such as the Elks, were given an exemption from Sitka’s 2005 citywide clean indoor air ordinance, but the Elks decided kids were more important than tobacco.

Injury Prevention and Safety

• Ray Majeski — honored for his work with the Sitka Ports and Harbors Commission, which installed 70 ladders at Sitka’s harbors with another 100 ladders on order. Now if someone falls into the water there is an easier way to climb out.
• Sitka Tribe of Alaska — honored for providing bicycle helmets to young cyclists and YakTrax or other traction devices for elders. Sitka Tribe of Alaska also sponsored a “Be Safe, Be Seen,” campaign this past fall, which got reflectives to walkers and cyclists so they can be seen by motorists during our dark months.

Holistic Health

• Andrea Thomas — honored for her work as owner of Yoga Union, as the tobacco prevention program grant manager at SEARHC, several years working in substance abuse treatment and prevention, and for being a role model for physical fitness as a runner, cyclist, kayaker and yogini.
• Tai Chi Chih — honors Tai Chi Chih instructors Nancy Jo Bleier, Martina Kurzer and Kathryn Snelling for leading free Tai Chi Chih classes in Sitka for several years as a form of meditation and movement, for their work with the senior movement program and for their work with Braveheart Volunteers.

General Wellness

• Candace Schaack and Helen West — honored for their work making their respective high schools healthier places. Candace is student body vice president at Mt. Edgecumbe High School and she helped with healthy vending machines and with a variety of community projects, including serving as host this month for the Alaska Association of Student Governments meeting in Sitka. Helen is with the Sitka High School student government, and her work helped bring SHS and MEHS closer together and she also did work to reduce racism and bullying in the schools.
• St. Peter’s-By-The-Sea Episcopal Church — honored for its work hosting
  12-step recovery programs, donating land for the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm community garden, hosting the start of the Alpine Adventure Run, organizing the annual Blessing of the Fleet and a 2008 Blessing of the Bikes.

The Steve Reifenstuhl Award

Bill Foster — honored for being an extraordinarily active community wellness role model. Bill is one of the most active men in Sitka, even though he is 70 years old. Fifty years ago he and a friend rode their bikes 2,900 miles from Missouri to Cuba and back. Earlier this year, Bill did a five-lake skate in Sitka where he ice skated around five different lakes in one day. He competed as a solo kayaker in the 2007 and 2008 Sitka Sound Ocean Adventure Races, where he finished ahead of other kayakers less than half his age. He is an active runner, cyclist and kayaker, and he is an excellent example of how people can be active throughout their entire lifespans.

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