By Lisa Carolin
This is a busy time of year for the Chelsea Friends and Family Wellness Coalition.
The Dec. 1 meeting included new intervention proposals, a review of two existing interventions as well as a presentation of a new Coalition Strategic Plan.
One of the Year 6 Intervention Proposals is for a Natural Play Area at the Eddy Discovery Center at the Waterloo Recreation Area. Katie McGlashen spoke to the coalition about the 1.74 acre area that would include a rock pile feature, a stump structure for climbing, hollow logs to crawl through, living willow habitats, and loose materials like sticks for children to arrange.
The other new intervention proposal is for 40 Heart Rate Monitors for Beach Middle School’s Weight and Fitness Class.
“This is the most durable heart rate monitor I’ve discovered on the market,” Corey Knight, a teacher and coach in the Chelsea school district, told coalition members. “It has the potential to reach up to 400 kids per year and it offers instant feedback of what they are working on.”
Jesse Kaufman, SRSLY coalition director, said that this is year eight that his group, which prevents destructive behavior in youth, has been in Chelsea, and it just keeps growing. SRSLY targets kids ages 10-15 and that includes students at South Meadows Elementary School, Beach Middle School, and Chelsea High School.
The Chelsea Farmers Market was reviewed by Manager Stephane Willette.
“This winter we’re going year round for the first time, and the market is located at the Washington Street Education Center,” she told Coalition Members. “Eating Healthy is our main mission, and we’ve added activities that include cooking demos, health-related education, and children’s activities.”
Willette said that the number of people using the various food assistance programs grew from 6,000 last year to more than 10,000 this year.
Ashley Tomasi, coalition coordinator, told the group that this is the end of 5 Healthy Towns first 5 years.
“We want to make sure that we keep the momentum going,” she said.
A Strategic Planning Team was formed that is developing a 3-year action plan. Goals include building partnerships with hospitals, schools, churches, and businesses, raising awareness of resources, and recruiting more youth members and getting them involved with decision making.
