NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release

Media Contacts:

Molly Hanson
LiveWell Wheat Ridge Coordinator, Jefferson
County Public Health
720-345-8547 Nathan Mosley
Management Analyst,
City of Wheat Ridge
303-235-2867

 Tracy Faigin Boyle
Vice President of Marketing & Communications,
LiveWell Colorado
720-353-4120 x 207

“Let’s Move! Video” by LiveWell Wheat Ridge and the City of Wheat Ridge Receives Honorable Mention from White House

Organizations Recognized for Community Efforts to Reduce and Prevent Childhood Obesity

WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. (July 19, 2012) – The City of Wheat Ridge and LiveWell Wheat Ridge are happy to announce the video they submitted to the “Let’s Move! Communities on the Move” Video Challenge, organized by First Lady Michelle Obama earlier this year, has received honorable mention from the White House. 

The video challenge inspired youth and adults from 21 states across the country to produce videos demonstrating creative efforts to reverse the trend of childhood obesity in our nation. The Wheat Ridge video detailed programmatic and policy strategies being undertaken by the City of Wheat Ridge and LiveWell Wheat Ridge to promote healthy food access to underserved children and to create places for all families to be active. The winners of the Let’s Move! Communities on the Move Video Challenge were announced in a press release by the White House on July, 12, 2012.

The City of Wheat Ridge video highlights a variety of programs and policies implemented over the past two years by a broad-based partnership in Wheat Ridge to foster healthier families and environments. The city has successfully increased access to improved and enhanced parks, trails and recreation facilities; increased access to food for underserved families; promoted policies that support walkable environments and urban agriculture; and demonstrated the community’s commitment to make Wheat Ridge a community that supports and fosters healthy
neighborhoods, families and individuals.

“I am thrilled that the efforts of LiveWell Wheat Ridge and the City of Wheat Ridge to support access to healthy eating and active living in the community – particularly for those who are most disparately affected – have been recognized by Let’s Move!,” said Maren Stewart, LiveWell Colorado President and CEO. “LiveWell Wheat Ridge serves as a terrific example of how a community can come together to creatively and effectively combat the growing childhood obesity epidemic.”

Rising childhood obesity rates in the country have encouraged local communities to forge new partnerships and expand priorities to respond to the childhood obesity epidemic. 

“As a Mayor, I understand that it takes teamwork to get things done. Issues like childhood hunger and safe neighborhoods require collaboration by many entities. Partnering with LiveWell Wheat Ridge has allowed us to address these issues through innovative programs and strengthen our community in the process,” says Wheat Ridge Mayor, Jerry DiTullio.

Selected by a panel of judges from Let’s Move!, USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services, the winner of the challenge and those who received Honorable Mention will be invited to the White House and will meet First Lady Michelle Obama at a date to be announced.

“To be nationally recognized for our efforts in Wheat Ridge is exciting” says Dayna Oehm, a parent of two in Wheat Ridge schools, a member of the LiveWell Wheat Ridge coalition and an urban planner. “It is great to see a mix of programs and polices working together to create sustainable change in Wheat Ridge. We should all be very proud of the work we are doing.”

To view the Wheat Ridge video submission, go to http://communities.challenge.gov/submissions/6888-livewell-wheat-ridge.

For more information:

• LiveWell Wheat Ridge, a community initiative funded by LiveWell Colorado, contact Molly Hanson, LiveWell Wheat Ridge Coordinator, at 720-345-8547, and visit https://about.livewellcolorado.org/livewell-wheat-ridge.
  
• City of Wheat Ridge, programs and strategies to support healthier communities, contact Nathan Mosley, Management Analyst for the City of Wheat Ridge, at 303-235-2867. View news release recognizing the City of Wheat Ridge as a public health champion for their energy, vision and commitment to create environments that support healthy behaviors. 
  
• LiveWell Colorado, contact Tracy Faigin Boyle, Vice President of Marketing & Communications for LiveWell Colorado, at 720-353-4120 x 207, and visit www.livewellcolorado.org.