The Be Well Fund Grant Project
The Be Well Columbus, Georgia Project came to a close at the awards ceremony held on May 18th, 2009 at Arnold Magnet Academy, school of the winning homeroom. The Be Well Columbus, Georgia Project was a pilot project instituted through the Muscogee County School District 7th graders and was made possible by a grant the Columbus Research Foundation received from the Microsoft HealthVault Be Well Fund. During a three month period from January 17 until April 24, 2009, participating students were encouraged to increase their physical activity as they took a virtual walk across the United States and to check their daily meal, snack and drink intake.
Mayor Jim Wetherington, Bill Reid of Microsoft Corporation, and Laura Linn of the Center for Health Transformation recognized the students for their accomplishments. Laura then read a letter to the students from CHT Founder Newt Gingrich: “Congratulations to the students, parents and teachers of Muscogee County who, with the help of the Columbus Research Foundation and the generous support of the Microsoft Be Well Fund, created and implemented a school project that will serve as a model for other communities -- not just here in Georgia but throughout the country. Today’s program celebrates an important milestone in an important journey – and we sincerely look forward to continuing to be involved as Columbus, Georgia moves toward being one of the healthiest communities in America.”
Mike Gaymon of the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce, Valerie Fuller of the MCSD, and Susan Wood of the Muscogee County Council of PTA's then spoke and awards were presented to the students by Royce Ann Adkins and Pam Tinkler of the Columbus Research Foundation.
First place went to Mrs. Ronda Allen's homeroom at Arnold Magnet Academy. The 7th grade students in this homeroom were the first to log enough miles walked to reach Bellevue, Washington, home of the Microsoft Corporation. The 2nd place winner was the homeroom of Mrs. Sara Davis at Marshall Middle School; 3rd place went to the home room of Mrs. Melissa Niemi at Arnold.
The overall goal of the project was to teach and instill healthy lifestyle choices in the area’s adolescents, thereby preventing diabetes and other metabolic disorders associated with being overweight. Over 1000 students participated in the project. It was encouraging to see adolescents engaged in their health. This project serves as a great model for other communities interested in improving the health of their children.
The Microsoft Corporation produced a video highlighting the success of the project.
