Mid-December may be early to make New Year’s resolutions, but it is the perfect time to decide to adopt a healthier lifestyle in January, gather some friends for support and formulate a strategy to benefit the person making the resolution and help needy children in the Pratt community.

The First United Methodist Church in Pratt has been awarded a $15,000 grant from the United Methodist Health Ministry to help families with children in both Pratt County public schools pay for dental and vision care, promote physical fitness and provide education about healthy lifestyles for parents.

An innovative approach earned the Build a Better World grant for the Pratt church.
Sheryl White, director of lay ministries, and Judy Rittgers, parish nurse, developed a team concept they expect to make a difference to the entire community. The goal is to attract at least 20 teams, with as many as 10 members each, who will commit to specific health improvement strategies while raising funds.

Teams may register with White or Rittgers at the church, by calling 672-6473, by mail at Build a Better World, P.O. Box 316, Pratt, or online at buildabetterworld.us. A team name and roster are requested.

The Faithfully Fit Forever class at the church has registered as a team. They are already involved in the exercise part of their program. At the official beginning of the program on Jan. 5, participants will weigh in at an official site, then at least every month during 2009. For the fund-raising piece, they plan to put money in the kitty for foregoing high calorie treats they don’t need. Rittgers expects they will easily raise the recommended $1,000 by donating the price of a cappuccino, an order of french fries or whatever each week during the year.

Pratt Regional Medical Center has registered a team, and White suggested that there may be some civic club challenges being discussed. She thinks it would be great if every business in town participated.

Team members decide on a common exercise or health theme, make an effort to eat healthy, hold each other accountable and look for innovative ways to make money, besides just donating out of pocket.

The church has already given $3,000 to the fund. When they reach $5,000, the grant will match dollar-for-dollar, guaranteeing $10,000 for Pratt children. Money raised by teams will allow more children to be helped.

With the current state of the economy, the need may be even more serious than when the grant was written, Rittgers predicted. Build a Better World directors will meet with school administrators quarterly to consider requests for funds. Donors can keep track of how the money is being spent on the program website.

Two-thirds of the grant funds are available for implementation of the program. Flyers have been mailed to post office boxholders in the county and events will be held to keep participants energized. A prize will be awarded at the end of the program to the team that accumulates the most points by losing weight, exercising, reading educational material provided on the website and answering questions.

Registration is encouraged right away so participants can get the new year started right and get in on more of the fun, Rittgers said, but teams can join at any time and if someone isn’t on a team, they can check the website to learn how they can help with fund-raising.

“We are doing something together to better ourselves and in turn help others,” White said. “They (United Methodist Health Ministry) could have given the money directly to the schools, but that would not be making a difference to the community.”