Shaping Elizabeth Community Health Forum – June 18, 2014

Elizabeth, NJ, April 24, 2014 --(PR.com)-- The Gateway Family YMCA and the Shaping Elizabeth Community Health Initiative are sponsoring a Community Health Forum on Wednesday June 18, 2014, “Shaping Elizabeth Healthy Connected Communities.” The forum is designed to raise awareness of health equity and the impact on the Elizabeth Community. Alane McCahey, Senior Director of Community Initiatives, The Gateway Family YMCA stated of the forum, “Our goal is to engage with 70-80 members of the community, with the goal of improving the overall health and well-being of the Elizabeth community.”

Krystal R. Canady, CEO of The Gateway Family YMCA, will provide the forum welcome, setting the purpose for the day. City of Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bollwage will speak on the City’s response to improving healthy living including the recent passage of a Complete Streets Resolution. The City of Elizabeth will be working with The Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey to assess the corridor in Elizabeth along Morris Avenue.

Darrin Anderson, Sr., PhD Deputy Director, New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids is the Keynote speaker for the forum. Dr. Anderson will describe the current state of the Elizabeth Community, and introduce successful outcomes from five communities in NJ currently engaged with the Partnership for Healthy Kids. Joseph L. McTernan, BS, MBA Senior Director, Community & Clinical Services from Trinitas Regional Medical Center, will be a featured speaker at the forum. He will provide insight into the outcome of the community needs assessment conducted by the hospital, and also provide details on the hospital’s response. He will discuss the need for the community to work together for successful policy and environmental changes to support healthy living.

Community members will be engaged in conversations with leaders from Shaping Elizabeth to collect data on their thoughts about living healthy in Elizabeth, looking at both why and how people do or do not become physical active or eat healthy in Elizabeth. “The Community Health Forum is an important step in creating a healthier city in Elizabeth,” stated Krystal R. Canady, CEO of The Gateway Family YMCA. Following the forum, ideas for improvement will be shared through social media and the YMCA website www.tgfymca.org.

The Shaping Elizabeth Community Health Initiative is sponsored by grants from Shaping NJ and The Elizabethtown Healthcare Foundation. The goal of the forum is to raise awareness of health equity issues and Shaping Elizabeth and engage the community in discussions on the needs of the Elizabeth community, and possible solutions to improve nutrition and increase physical activity to prevent chronic disease and reduce obesity. The forum will be located at The Gateway Family YMCA – Elizabeth Branch, 135 Madison Avenue, in Elizabeth. Registration will begin at 8:30am on June 18, 2014, with the forum continuing until 12:30pm.

For more information Shaping Elizabeth Community Healthy Connected Communities Forum or The Gateway Family YMCA, please visit www.tgfymca.org or contact the Elizabeth Branch at elizabethinfo@tgfymca.org or 908-355-9622.