Healthier Together

Gifford amplifies community outreach with RiseVT

From new collaborations with partners like VeggieVanGo and the Vermont Foodbank to the reinvigoration of the staff Wellness Committee, 2019 saw Gifford continue and grow our longtime commitment to community health outreach on and off campus. Throughout the year, we worked to address food insecurity by providing access to fresh produce and educating about healthy eating choices, supported initiatives that promote (safe) physical activity for all ages, and continued prevention education around vaping and other risky behaviors.

Providing a catalyst to increase much of our outreach was RiseVT, a statewide movement that works within communities to help residents embrace healthier lifestyles, improve quality of life, and lower health-care costs. RiseVT is also the primary prevention strategy for OneCare Vermont, the statewide accountable care organization (ACO). Gifford joined the ACO in January and announced our partnership with RiseVT in April.

“We are very excited to have Gifford on board with RiseVT,” said RiseVT Executive Director Marissa Parisi. “The team at Gifford has already been doing remarkable work in their community to make the environment support healthy lifestyle choices.”

RiseVT utilizes an evidence-based model that engages public-private partnerships, community campaigns, and a scientific advisory board to achieve measurable and sustainable improvement in population health. In 2019, the collaborative supported Gifford’s outreach in Orange County with programs designed to help make the healthy choice the easy choice for individuals and families where they live, work and play.

“RiseVT has really enabled us to amplify our current work and grow our community outreach,” said Bethany Silloway, who serves as Gifford’s community outreach coordinator as well as the RiseVT program manager for Orange County. “Our mission and goals are aligned, so bringing us together is an obvious kind of union.”

RiseVT’s strategy includes seeking out wellness opportunities already underway, spreading the word, and offering resources to reduce barriers to participation. Resources include “Amplify Grants,” awarded to local organizations whose projects align with RiseVT’s mission. Grants, not to exceed $1,500, are awarded for projects that increase access and reduce barriers to physical activity, healthy foods, or physical, social and emotional wellbeing.

In 2019, Gifford helped guide Amplify Grants to a variety of community partners, including local Farm-to-School programs, Rochester/Randolph Area Sports Trail Alliance (RASTA), Randolph Recreation Department, Randolph Farmers Market, Randolph Area Senior Center, Archytas Education Group (student robotics team), the athletic program at Randolph Union High School, White River Valley Supervisory Union, and Clara Martin Center. Here’s how some of the funds were used:

Farm-to-School: Randolph and Braintree

Farm-to-School educator Misse Axelrod received Amplify Grants on behalf of Braintree and Randolph elementary schools and Randolph Technical Career Center.

“The idea is to connect [students] with a deeper farm experience, beyond a field trip, to develop an understanding of where our food comes from,” said Axelrod. At the elementary schools, “We have taste tests, where a farmer comes in and does a demo and tasting, and later the food turns up on the school cafeteria menu. It’s really about developing a ‘know your farmer’ mentality.”

At RTCC, funds were awarded to support the students in planting a large berry patch where they can conduct field taste tests and participate in education around healthy choices. The school developed plans for the patch in the fall, and students will plant in spring 2020 with help from the agriculture program at RTCC.

Axelrod said the RiseVT/Gifford-supported programs are important because they build self-efficacy for students, so they feel empowered to make healthy food choices, and because they build connections with and support the local agriculture community.

“They just absolutely love it,” said Axelrod of the response from students. “They love getting out of the classroom and learning in a different environment. One of their favorite things to do is harvest.”

Parents, too, responded positively to the programs, which included Gifford bringing a Fender Blender bike to Math Night in Braintree so students could make smoothies using the power of their legs.

“Parents really appreciate the collaboration with Gifford, to know that there is community support to feed and educate our kids. I really think they appreciate that,” said Axelrod. “They also enjoyed seeing a local food piece be incorporated into Math Night.”

“It’s very exciting to get funding and have support from Gifford and RiseVT,” she said. “One of the key components of a successful Farm-to-School program is collaboration.”

Continuing the theme of access to local, healthy food and with support from RiseVT, Gifford partnered with the Randolph Recreation Department to send our registered dietitian to summer camp to teach local children about making healthy choices – campers had a chance to use the Fender Blender bike – and in the fall supported the Randolph Farmers Market’s “Power of Produce” program with fun activities for kids and healthy cooking demonstrations with Gifford Chef Ed Striebe.

RASTA

The Rochester/Randolph Area Sports Trail Alliance (RASTA) was awarded a $1,500 grant to help outfit members of the Ridge Riders, RASTA’s recently formed youth mountain bike team. The funds covered the cost of high-quality, dry-wick team jerseys and other supplies, like chain lube. The shirts came just in time for the team: in October they hosted riders from across the state for the fifth and final series of the 2019 Vermont Youth Cycling Race.

So far there are 20 Ridge Riders, in grades 5-12, and the team also has a feeder component of 5- to 10-year-olds.

“For right now, our team is a little grassroots,” said Zac Freeman, a RASTA board member. “We can’t hire a coach per se. It’s pretty much been all of the dads of the kids who are really into it. Our group rides have turned into training sessions for kids as well.”

“Kids come out for trail work days and totally understand that we’re doing this grassroots-style,” he said. “They know it’s only going to be as good as how much you engage with it and turn up. They are excited.”

While the team is still new, engagement has been high.

“We definitely saw a real solid number of youth riders in the greater Randolph area,” said Freeman. “A handful of them were already racing in other mountain bike [events] throughout the state. Kids are really into it, and it was timely to get this going. High school and youth mountain bike teams are a trending thing. There are races, series and teams, just like there are lacrosse and bass fishing teams.”

“RiseVT and RASTA are in a unique position to do cool things. This is the first of many collaborations. We’re excited for what lies ahead.”

Greater Randolph Senior Center

A $1,500 Amplify Grant was awarded to the Greater Randolph Senior Center to cover the full cost for 12 seniors to participate in an eight-week series of classes on balance and falls prevention at local fitness center Movement Evolved.

Movement Evolved co-owner Kristen Gage designed the class and wrote the grant application on behalf of the senior center.

“The goal of this series it to lessen the likelihood of falls of Randolph-area seniors by improving their overall conditioning and balance, bringing awareness to key areas of the body that are the most critical for balance and falls prevention, and motivating participants to take the time to maintain/improve their overall health and safety through general exercise and falls prevention awareness,” wrote Gage in the application.

Led by Gage and another coach, both specially trained “functional fitness experts,” the 60-minute classes focused on key deficits that make seniors particularly vulnerable to injury by falls. Sessions centered on mobility and flexibility, particularly in the ankles and hips; gait and proprioceptive enhancement; postural control and stabilization capacity; and improving eccentric control during movement, which is essential for improving the deceleration of gravitational force.

“Every year in September is fall prevention awareness, so every year we try to do something,” said Emilie Daniel, executive director of the senior center. “When Movement Evolved talked about a fall prevention series, that was exactly what we wanted. A lot of our seniors are in their 70s and 80s, and once you fall you become afraid you’ll fall again.”

Movement Evolved ultimately decided to hold the series in two parts, with 12 participants for four weeks in the fall and another group slated to start in spring 2020.

“Everyone said they would recommend the class to their friends,” said Daniel of the first group’s class evaluations. “Everyone said, yes, they feel more confident about falls prevention after the course.”

“It was very good for us that Movement Evolved designed this course. It was just what we were looking for. They got the grant, so people who couldn’t pay for it were able to go. We want to do this yearly. We’re very glad for the partnership.”