For an overview of the Healthy Kids Photo Contest (being held in April 2011), go here.

Meeting Waters YMCA has developed a comprehensive plan to help youth, teens, adults, elders, families and entire communities in their quests to develop and maintain supports for healthier lifestyles. Particular emphasis is placed on "Health Seekers," a term the YMCA movement is using to describe the 45-55% of Americans that desire a healthier lifestyle but who need ongoing guidance and supportive environments to initiate and sustain the changes required.

Activate Windham County aims to significantly reduce the epidemic and compounding rates of lifestyle-related disease and disability among youth and adults while promoting good health habits in individuals, families and communities.

Visit this page often for updates on Activate Windham County programs, services and events.

Activate Windham County resources:

For individuals:

• Journey to a Healthier Lifestyle is a 10-week, facilitated education and support group for "health-seekers" developed by Meeting Waters YMCA staff. The next session will be held in Brattleboro and begins on January 25th, 2011. For more information about the program and to register for the next session, please go here. 
• Stanford Health and Lifestyle Assessment (SHALA): A tool created specifically for YMCAs by Stanford Medical School. SHALA is an online tool to help you identify potential health risks; assist you in making important health choices; and to help you in deciding what programs, services and activities may be appropriate to your needs and wants. SHALA provides immediate results through a simple on-line process. It is completely confidential. Your individual results are not shared with anyone. To use SHALA go here.
• The Third Dimension of Work-Family Balance: YOU!, an article by Meeting Waters YMCA co-directors Susan and Steve Fortier from the March 2008 issue of Parent Express magazine.

For families:

• Healthy Family Home: Go here to download the Healthy Family Home Starter Kit, a practical resource guide for families to take steps toward eating healthier, getting more physical activity and connecting more as a family and with other families. 
• We've brought Healthy Family Home and Food & Fun Curriculum (developed by Harvard School of Public Health for YMCA after-school programs) into our ASPIRE and summer camp programs, involving more than 400 youth and their families.
• Strong Families: Developing Healthy Spirits, Minds and Bodies for All an article by Meeting Waters YMCA co-directors Susan and Steve Fortier from the October, 2007 issue of Parent Express magazine.
• Healthy Family, Healthy Home, an article by Meeting Waters YMCA co-directors Susan and Steve Fortier from the October 2009 issue of Parent Express magazine.
• Making the Healthy Choice the Easy Choice, an article by Meeting Waters YMCA's Activate Windham County coordinator, Steve Fortier from the March 2010 issue of Parent Expess magazine.
• Our annual YMCA Healthy Kids Day takes place on Saturday, May 22nd from 10-noon at our Lewis Day Camp facility on Route 5 in Springfield. Fun, hands-on activities for the whole family led by staff from MWYMCA and several other area youth and health organizations. Free and open to the public. Help us spread the word by downloading our promotional poster and posting it at work or in your neighborhood. Thanks!

For communities:

• We have organized a team of change leaders from throughout Windham County for our Healthy Communities Coalition that was selected by the CDC to participate in a two year training and technical assistance program working with them and other national partners to stimulate and sustain environmental and policy changes that will "make the healthy choice the easy choice where people live, work, learn and play" throughout Windham County. We have chosen to focus our efforts on improving access to healthy foods and greater opportunities for routine physical activity. More on PHC here.

About Activate America:

The Meeting Waters YMCA is one of 2,686 locally-created, locally-led YMCAs nationwide. YMCAs have been pioneers in health and fitness for over a century and today enjoy a well-earned reputation as a leader in holistic and preventive health. The Meeting Waters YMCA has been a local leader in public health and health-promotion services since its founding in 1895.

Building on this history of leadership, in 2006 local YMCAs, including Meeting Waters YMCA, in partnership with YMCA of the USA, our national resource center, launched Activate America. The Meeting Waters YMCA was one of the first YMCAs to sign-on to this public health initiative.

YMCA Activate America is rallying YMCAs across the country to further enhance their service and support to youth, adults and families who want to lead a healthy lifestyle, but struggle to do so. As a part of YMCA Activate America, YMCAs are also deepening their commitment to community-wide efforts to promote healthy living and intensifying their collaboration with other community partners to magnify their impact.

YMCA Activate America was created because-as the nation's oldest and largest community based organization with over 2,600 YMCAs, 20.9 million members and a mission dedicated to health and wellness, the YMCA movement is uniquely qualified and positioned to impact our country's growing obesity, chronic disease and health care crisis.

To maximize its impact, the YMCA system has enlisted national partners to provide expert advice on the development of YMCA Activate America. These partners include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Steps to a HealthierUS initiative, Harvard School of Public Health and Stanford University School of Medicine.