From the President

It’s hard to believe it’s almost Autumn again – and time for the third annual Governor’s Health Bowl! The Spring and Summer have been a whirlwind for the Washington Health Foundation and Healthiest State in the Nation Campaign.

May was an especially busy month for us. We were honored to be joined by more than 80 Participating Organizations at our Annual Meeting on May 18. Our staff reported on the state legislative session and our policy wins, our Healthiest State Grants, and our Health Home and Tobacco Cessation programs. Even more important, it was a great opportunity to hear from many Participating Organizations about how we can make the Campaign even more valuable to you.

Finding the answer to this question was also the intent of a series of outreach tours we undertook this Spring and Summer. A Foundation staff team has been traveling across the state to meet with Participating Organizations and Champions in communities and building stronger and deeper relationships as we strive to make Washington #1.

One important theme has emerged from the Annual Meeting and these community visits: You would like more information from us and to connect more with others doing work like yours.

We have already developed some new Campaign pieces based on your advice. One example is a new section on our website for Participating Organizations. A “Campaign Resources” page is now accessible to your organizational contact person, and includes downloadable posters, customizable newsletter articles and health tips, as well as information on how other organizations are participating in the Healthiest State Campaign. Some of those stories are also featured in Workplace Wellness Around Washington article in this issue of thrive! magazine.

We are also in the process of developing some new pieces of the Healthiest State Campaign, including a full employee wellness program at the request of our friends in the business community, more resources and support for our K-12 schools, and some new segments for state universities and colleges as we focus on young adults as one primary audience for the Campaign.

When not on the road, we have also been implementing some new workplace wellness policies of our own. On June 1, the Washington Health Foundation moved offices, and took 15 cars off the road by changing our commuting policy. It is important to walk our own talk, and our staff can testify that our physical activity is increasing as we now bus, walk or bicycle to work.

We are now located in downtown Seattle, where more than 50 of our Participating Organizations joined us in celebrating our new office location at an Open House & Healthy Happy Hour on July 23. Additionally, we were very pleased to have five summer interns join us in our new space—and we are currently seeking interns for the Fall, Winter and Spring if you know of a young person who might be interested in helping to improve health in Washington state.

Now that we’re heading into Fall, it’s time for the third annual Governor’s Health Bowl. This year, Governor Gregoire is challenging the people of Washington to log 5 million miles of health in just six weeks – that’s the equivalent of 10 roundtrips... to the MOON! Get ready to log your miles of physical activity and to test your knowledge with the Health Q&A... and this year, you can earn additional bonus miles for using several new trackers at HealthiestState.org: Dental Health Tracker, Nutrition Tracker, Sleep Tracker, Tobacco Cessation Tracker, and Water Tracker. Plus earn an additional 100 bonus miles for taking a Health Risk Assessment in 2007 — now is a great time to get it done! And, don’t forget that all those extra miles can lead to great prizes!

Following the 2007 Governor’s Health Bowl, be sure to stay tuned as WHF continues policy work that will help Washington become the Healthiest State in the Nation. We will be asking you to answer some surveys to help guide our work, and we would encourage you to join our Policy & Advocacy Network.

With now more than 900 organizations and businesses participating in the Healthiest State Campaign, as well as 35,000 individuals, we are ready to begin making a much bigger impact on Washington’s health. Thank you for joining us in moving Washington from #15 to #1!