Month: August 2019

Oconto Falls Earns Bronze Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation

Packerland Team

31 communities in Wisconsin receive designations

Healthy Designation Award

Oconto Falls has been recognized for its work to improve local health by receiving a Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation. Oconto Falls received bronze designation from the initiative through the UW Population Health Institute. Oconto Falls is one of only thirteen communities throughout the state to receive the bronze level designation.

The Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation, funded by the Wisconsin Partnership Program, is designed to celebrate and encourage achievements in health improvement in Wisconsin, and to serve as a guide for communities to expand and enhance their health improvement efforts.

Through the collaborative efforts of the Oconto Falls Area Chamber of Commerce, HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital, Oconto Falls School District and Oconto County Public Health – programs such as the Oconto Falls Area Trail System, the annual Health and Safety Fair, the Donate a Healthy Plate Toolkit, and Stepping On improve the health and well-being of all.

Kathy Henne, RN, and Community Benefits Facilitator at HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital, referenced the recently completed Oconto County Community Health Needs Assessment. “Two areas identified in the assessment include the need to increase physical activity and to educate and promote healthy food choices,” said Kathy. “The development of the Oconto Falls Area Trail System and the Donate a Healthy Plate Toolkit addresses these identified needs.”

The Oconto Falls Area Trail System Organization has created and maintains fitness trails throughout the city. Additional sections of the trail will be completed through fundraising efforts and community support, as well as the proceeds from the 5K, 10K and Half Marathon Run for the Trails event.

The Donate a Healthy Plate Toolkit educates the community on healthy food pantry donations and conducting healthy food drives. More information on the toolkit can be found on the Oconto County website at: www.co.oconto.wi.us.

The annual Health and Safety Fair is a fun-filled day of hands-on learning for young and old alike. Each year the event is held at the Oconto Falls Elementary School. More than 30 vendors come together to educate on a variety of health and safety topics.

Stepping On is a nationally recognized fall prevention program for the elderly population. Carol Luebeck, RN, with Quality Living by Choice, offers this program in various locations throughout the county including HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital.

“So much great work is happening throughout Oconto Falls,” said Oconto Falls Area Chamber of Commerce President, Gail Yatso. “This is not happening because of one business, organization, or person – it’s a community working together to create a healthier environment through education, awareness, and action!”

More Information

About the Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation
The Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation is a new initiative offered by the Mobilizing Action Toward Community Health (MATCH) group of the UW Population Health Institute (UWPHI), in collaboration with diverse statewide groups. The Healthy Communities Designation program, funded by the Wisconsin Partnership Program of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, is designed to recognize and encourage achievements in health improvement in Wisconsin. To learn more about the program, visit: www.wihealthycommunities.org.

Veterans-Monument

Veterans Monument in Oconto Falls.

Packerland Team
Rendered Veterans Monument in Oconto Falls

The Oconto Falls Monument Committee is raising money to build a Veterans Monument in Oconto Falls.

The monument will be built on the hillside overlooking Woodlawn Cemetery, where some of our local veterans are buried.

This location offers visibility in the community and is adjacent to the Oconto Falls walking trail.

Our fundraising goal is $125,000, which includes funding for upkeep for years to come.

With the generous support of more than 170 community donors, we have already raised $90,000.

We need your help to reach the finish line. We have several different sponsorship opportunities available, which we have laid out below. Once you make a selection, we have included an order form for your convenience.

Oconto Falls Veterans Memorial Fund BrochureDownload

Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designations announced

Packerland Team

MADISON – More than 30 communities around the state have been recognized for their work to improve health in their communities.

The Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation is a new initiative offered by the Mobilizing Action Toward Community Health (MATCH) group of the UW Population Health Institute (UWPHI), in collaboration with diverse statewide groups. The program, funded by the Wisconsin Partnership Program, is designed to celebrate and encourage achievements in health improvement in Wisconsin, and to serve as a guide for communities to expand and enhance their health improvement efforts.

The designation program recognizes communities that focus efforts across the multiple factors that influence health – including health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors, and the physical
environment – with a focus on equity, multi-sector partnerships and sustainable solutions.

Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designations announced

“Achieving equitable health outcomes takes years to accomplish, and this program is all about celebrating the hard work happening across Wisconsin,” said Sheri Johnson, director of the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. “Our goal is to acknowledge and support ongoing efforts in local communities to improve health for everyone.”

This year, 31 communities received either a bronze, silver or gold designation. Four communities received a gold designation. The tiers are meant to provide a trajectory and serve as a guide for communities as they work toward comprehensive solutions for better health – the gold level representing the most difficult to achieve. However, receiving a designation, at any level, does not indicate that health or health equity has been achieved in a community; rather, the designation is meant to commend the efforts and the partnerships working to improve health.

The initiative’s definition of community is broad and can include counties, municipalities, neighborhoods and other self-defined, place-based communities in Wisconsin.

“This initiative was developed in response to a request from rural communities across the state and gives communities of all shapes and sizes – rural and urban – an opportunity to be recognized for the great work that they are doing to improve their own health,” said Tim Size, executive director of the Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative, a collaborative of 42 rural hospitals and local health systems, and a member of the UW Population Health Institute’s advisory board.

The Healthy Community Designation lasts for three years, at which point a community may reapply. To learn more about the program and the application process, visit the program website: www.wihealthycommunities.org

The communities were recognized at the 2018 Healthiest State Summit, Sept. 20 and 21, at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay. This two-day summit was a statewide gathering of leaders to work on shared priorities around health equity and to build skills.

For more on the summit please visit: https://www.wpha.org/mpage/HealthiestState

More about the Designation program

The Wisconsin Healthy Communities Designation program is an initiative of the Mobilizing Action Toward Community Health (MATCH) group’s Making Wisconsin the Healthiest State project at the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. The Making Wisconsin the Healthiest State project, funded by the Wisconsin Partnership Program of the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, seeks to help us understand and improve health across Wisconsin.