* LET'S MOVE INITIATIVE *

Denise H. Jones aka ~ The Weight Loss Angel Attended this very special event partnering with Gwen Foster - Philadelphia's former Health Czar "One Mile Day To Fight Obesity" We have now walked our first mile but our goal was to complete a 100 more as we support The First Lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move Initiative."

Starting at Ebenezer Seventh-Day Adventist Church 1437 Christian Street Philadelphia, PA

The First Episcopal District of the AME Church has partnered with the American Diabetes Association, Adventists In Step for Life, The Wellness in You, First African Baptist Church and United Health Care Insurance Program for " SOUL to SOLE! A FAITH Based Community Walk "

We were walking our first mile but our goal was 100. I had joined Gwen Foster, the former Philadelphia health czar, in her plan to get everybody moving. She had gotten members of her Seventh Day Adventist church and others in Philadelphia and Camden to publicly support First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign to fight childhood obesity.

Foster linked the Let’s Move efforts to celebrate the 100th birthday of her church, Ebenezer SDA church in South Philadelphia, which was started in 1911. She asked each participant to commit to walking at least one mile each day for 100 days. On Sunday, we walked two miles – along Christian Street in Philadelphia from the church at 15th Street to 25th Street and back. Several residents came to their doors to cheer us on and check out what was going on. With their children, they tapped to music provided by the church’s Pathfinder’s drum corps.

The walk was a mini-tour of Black institutions in South Philadelphia. The Universal Communities Organic Garden was diagonally across from the church. We passed through the Marian Anderson Historic District and went by the First African Baptist Church, built in 1909. Some walkers – like those from the West Philadelphia SDA  church led by Leah Scott, health ministries director for Allegheny East, and fitness coach Valarie Roach – knocked off eight miles in a round trip that started at 45th Street and Haverford Avenue. Fitness coach Emilio Roman had us doing movement activities while walking.

It was a morning full of festivities, including drum and vocal solos. There were service agencies offering gifts: The American Diabetes Association and United Healthcare. There were religious leaders from various denominations: African Methodist Episcopal, Baptist, Seventh Day Adventist. There were testimonials about eating differently, and getting off diabetes and blood pressure medications. Most powerful was Obesity Jones, who has lost 125 pounds and illustrated the change on a sandwich board showing before and after pictures.

It was a morning full of festivities, including drum and vocal solos. There were service agencies offering gifts: The American Diabetes Association and United Healthcare. There were religious leaders from various denominations: African Methodist Episcopal, Baptist, Seventh Day Adventist. There were testimonials about eating differently, and getting off diabetes and blood pressure medications. Most powerful was Obesity Jones, who has lost 125 pounds and illustrated the change on a sandwich board showing before and after pictures.

In 2002, researchers at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia stated that 36 percent of all children between 2 and 17 years of age were at risk for obesity and 23 percent were obese. These statistics are mirrored in many communities across the country.

Let’s turn those statistics around by helping everyone, especially young children, to move. Philadelphia is a Let’s Move city. Are you moving? Is your family moving? “Let’s Move!” “Let’s Move!” “Let’s Move!”