It’s time to get out and enjoy the fall weather.
Coordinator of the non-profit organization Mass in Motion Julianne Kelly recently stated that Surgeon General, Vivek H. Murthy recommends 20 minutes a day of walking to prevent or control chronic disease. His Call to Action to Promote Walking and walkable Communities was issued earlier this month, and steps are being taken to turn the city into a walkable community.
On September 30, Wendy Landman, Director of WalkBoston, the statewide pedestrian advocacy organization, will speak on creating walkable communities at 6 PM in the City Council Hearing Room of Government Center.
A multi-year Diabetes and Hypertension Prevention Grant was recently awarded to the City of Fall River and Stanley Street Treatment and Resource Center’s (SSTAR) Community Health Center by the the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Through both infrastructure improvement and personal lifestyle changes, the aim is to encourage healthy eating and increase activity to reduce the risk of Diabetes and Hypertension.
“With insight from Walk Boston, we hope to form a community walking advisory board, to make and keep Fall River a pedestrian friendly city. Almost everyone can walk, and we want to encourage people who live, work and go to school in Fall River to rethink how they get around town. Walk to the market, post office, library, walk your kids to school!” Julianne Kelly says.
She adds that “If a destination is too far, take a bus and walk the remaining distance- a ten minute walk each way gives you your 20 minutes of walking a day. Additionally, streets and sidewalks must be accessible to people with disabilities, so that rolling in a wheelchair, which requires core strength and upper body strength, is safe for handicapped residents of the City, who are more susceptible to chronic disease.”
For more information on any of the upcoming projects, contact kelly@fallriverma.org or Health Promotion Coordinator at SSTAR Eric Andrade at 508-863-973 or eandrade@sstar.org.
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