by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
A group of about 200 people gathered in Hemming Plaza Wednesday to mark “National Start! Walking Day” by taking a one-mile stride through Downtown. The rally, health fair and walk was one of more than 1,300 held simultaneously all over the country by the American Heart Association to raise awareness of health and fitness and how easy it can be to get started on a physical fitness program.
“We are here today to promote walking as a physical activity,” said Dave Josserand, Dalton Agency partner and 2009 National Chair of the American Heart Association. “It’s the easiest way to get started on a fitness plan and walking has the lowest dropout rate. You don’t need equipment and you don’t need a membership. Throwing on a pair of comfortable shoes and taking a brisk walk can be the first step toward a healthier lifestyle. It has been proven that one hour of vigorous physical activity leads to two hours of added life expectancy.”
Josserand said wellness is also important in terms of a business’s well-being because healthy employees are more productive and having a healthy workforce can result in reduced benefits cost as well.
“And in any business, your people are your most valuable asset,” he added.
The rally was also the official change of leadership for this year’s local Start! Heart Walk Sept. 26 at Metropolitan Park.
St. Vincent’s HealthCare CEO and 2008 walk chair Scott Whalen literally “passed the torch” to this year’s co-chairs, Shands Jacksonville President Jim Burkhart and Vice President Greg Miller.
Burkhart said he’s proud to help lead this year’s fundraising walk because wellness is part of the corporate culture at Shands.
“We built a fitness center with the help of our employees and we have contests where people wear pedometers on their shoes and teams compete to see who can walk the most. We also encourage everyone who works at Shands to get involved with Heart Walk,” he said.
“Wellness fits in perfectly with our mission,” said Whalen. “And one thing that is going to have to happen in health care in America is to have a focus on wellness and prevention. St. Vincent’s wants to set an example for the entire community.”
The local chapter of the American Heart Association has launched a Web site at www.firstcoastheartwalk.org where individuals and corporate teams can register to participate in this year’s Start! Heart Walk. Registered walkers can create their own Web page on the site, use it to network with family and friends and report on their progress as they prepare for the walk in September.
“This is truly a community effort,” said Burkhart. “We see 10,000 cardiology patients each year at Shands and perform more than 2,600 cardiac procedures. Every dollar we raise will help prevent heart attacks and strokes.”
Photo by Max Marbut
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