In Your Community
No one is an island, and most of us — and our families — belong to some sort of community, whether it's a small town like Cimarron or a city like Wichita.
But have you ever thought of your community as an extension of your family? A community is a group of people (or families) living in a particular area. And it's pretty simple: When you do something good for your community, you do something good for your family too. Here are some things parents can do to benefit their children's health and make their hometowns a better place to live.
- Organize community events and projects to promote healthy messages. Throughout the year, you and other involved parents can help get the word out about good eating and exercise. Take a look at some suggestions for being a leader in an important cause!
- Affect policy and projects in your community to promote healthy living.
- Find out who the movers and shakers in your town and in Kansas are—then get their attention! Community leaders need to know what you think is important. And what's more important than the health of your kids? Check out these tips for making a difference.
- Form a wellness committee, join a neighborhood planning group, or volunteer to be an economic development advisory member to support policies that improve access to walking trails, neighborhood grocery stores (within walking distance) and parks.
- As a parent advocate, make sure children are getting all the help they need to do well. Parents can lead community coalitions to develop safe routes to schools and start employee wellness programs, for example.
- Facilitate neighborhood committees to review community development policies and neighborhood plats for adequate sidewalks, parks and green-space.
- Be a model for a healthy lifestyle and encourage others to be health-conscious in their daily lives.
- Network with other parents in support of community programs, practices and policies that support health. Use the forums you have—your church, temple, social club, business, neighborhood and city or state government.
- Recognize and acknowledge the positive work of others through letters to the editor, call-in radio programs, flyers, bulletins and your attendance at community health lectures, lunch discussions and forums.
- Adopt a group or initiative in your community on which to concentrate your efforts to increase parent involvement for improved youth health.
- With a group of friends, conduct a community "fact-finding mission." For example, take inventory of the number of vending machines on the walk to schools and the kinds of foods they contain.
- Also take notes on what is for sale in school store or in other places on or near campus. Are there fast-food restaurants nearby?
- Use e-mail and the Internet to communicate breaking news and legislation that will impact the health of your family and community.
- Plan a Family Health Event to increase parents' awareness of health and understanding of their own health risks.
- Always look for strategies to get other parents to join you. If the person you seek cannot or will not join in the process, ask them to suggest someone else. Let people know that their input is important no matter how small!
Finally, here are a few useful sites that can help parents get together to make great changes for their kids.