LiveWell Longmont promoting healthy lifestyles

The goals of the LiveWell Longmont movement sound rather like the advice doctors give about a healthy lifestyle: Eat your fruits and vegetables every day — at least five servings of each. Walk to school and work — or maybe ride your bicycle. Don’t just sit in front of the computer or the television all day — get up and do something!

Joel Groebner and his daughter, Emerson Groebner , 11, pick out apples at Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers in Longmont. Longmont's LiveWell initiative is encouraging residents, especially children, to eat more fruits and vegetables and exercise more. Lindsay J.C. Lack photo

In fact, the mission of the LiveWell Longmont movement is “to ensure that healthy lifestyle choices are always available and convenient to all who work, live, play and learn” in Longmont.

The movement kicked off in fall 2008 with the formation of a steering committee coalition of partners, said LiveWell Longmont Manager Melissa Trecoske Houghton. Organizations participating on the steering committee include the City of Longmont, St. Vrain Valley School District, Boulder County Public Health, The Ed and Ruth Lehman YMCA, Longmont United Hospital, Kaiser Permanente, the OUR Center and Sun Construction.

The steering committee developed four goals to be achieved in a five-year period, Houghton said. They include increasing the percentage of Longmont residents who eat five fruits and vegetables a day from 42 percent to 62 percent; increasing by 25 percent the number of people in Longmont who incorporate walking, biking or other physical activity into daily life; making Longmont a highly-informed community in the areas of physical activity and nutrition; and ensuring that LiveWell Longmont is a sustainable community movement with a diversity of resources.

“We are taking more of a policy and environmental change approach,” Houghton said. “We are really a pilot community for doing this.”

The LiveWell Longmont steering committee, in partnership with Kaiser Permanente, conducted a food systems assessment of the Longmont community over the summer and fall.

“We have looked at the whole process of bringing food to the Longmont community,” Houghton said. “We focused on the affordability and accessibility of health foods. We surveyed Longmont residents and held focus groups to gather information. We are trying to use the community voice and craft what we would like to see.”

The survey results, expected to be announced this month, will be used to identify gaps in the process of bringing healthy food to Longmont. The LiveWell Longmont steering committee will work with several partners, including Community Food Share, The O.U.R. Center, churches and local farmers to address any gaps that may appear, Houghton said.
The LiveWell group also is working with City of Longmont officials to find ways to incorporate health outcomes into the Longmont Area Comprehensive Plan, which is currently being revised.

“Most communities don’t have health outcomes and food intake information in their comprehensive plans,” said steering committee Chair Eric Bergeson of the YMCA. “We have a vision for the city that includes healthy eating and active living for our residents. We think there are strategies and ideas for achieving that vision that can be included in the comprehensive plan.”
The LiveWell Longmont movement expects to receive about $1.5 million over seven years from LiveWell Colorado, its parent group. The movement also receives in-kind services from its partner groups to support its budget, Houghton said.

In the past year, the LiveWell Longmont group conducted training sessions focusing on healthy eating and active living at St. Vrain Valley School District elementary schools. The group also funded projects at some of the schools, including a “square foot garden” at Spangler Elementary in Longmont, where students in the SVVSD Math, Engineering and Science Achievement program grew healthy vegetables in the garden over the summer. The group also is partnering with Longmont area gardening groups to provide funding to start and sustain new community gardens.
LiveWell Longmont supported Bicycle Longmont by sponsoring training for five Longmont residents to become licensed cycling instructors, and provided funds to purchase a trailer for housing the bicycle safety training materials. The group also was a sponsor of the YMCA’s Y-Pals program, which distributed more than 300 bikes to Longmont families.
Worksite wellness programs are a priority for the LiveWell movement. This year, the group funded wellness programs for employees of the city, the school district and Longmont United Hospital — three of the largest employers in the city, Bergeson said.

“We’re looking for a social shift, and what better places are there to have that happen than in the schools, health care and the city?” he said. “Those groups of employees can be examples for other employers and residents of Longmont.”

LiveWell Longmont holds quarterly community task force meetings in January, April, July and October.

“We are constantly looking to grow and build our network,” Houghton said. “We are looking for people and organizations that have a passion for healthy eating and living.”
Longmont community groups or residents interested in becoming involved should contact Houghton for more information at 720-652-4721.

Email: kcglasscock@comcast.net