Photoa by Lay la Uarms
Right: STEPS par
ticipants get busy
during Hoyatt
Allen's kick boxing
class Tuesday.
Below: From left:
STEPS partici
pants Debbie
Thompason,
Marcie King Loris
Hines, Jacqueline
Bitting and Judy
Martin.
Heart health program takes unique
STEPS to save lives of black women
BY LAYLA GARMS
THE CHRONICLE
Women in the local African
American community are tak
ing "STEPS" to decrease their
risk of cardiovascular disease.
STEPS (Sisters Together
Empowered for Prevention and
Success) to a Healthier Heart is
an innovative program led by
Winston-Salem State
University. It combines aware
ness initiatives with exercise
classes and informational ses
sions and is targeting African
American women between the
ages of 35-65. The ultimate
goal is for participants to
improve their heart health
before a major cardiovascular
incident takes place.
Over a 12 week period, the
project follows women in three
cohorts: underserved (or
underinsured or uninsured),
WSSU faculty and staff and
the greater community. Each
group is divided into two sub
groups. One group participates
in hourlong exercise classes
twice a week and attends
workshops about heart healthy
living two times a month.
"We try to make them
knowledgeable of what they
need to do (to improve their
heart health). It goes hand in
hand with the programs that
we offer," said Marian Booker,
i I.l i; ? r
community neaun liaison lor
the project. "We offer them a
variety of different exercises
every week - Zumba, kickbox
ing, we've even done some
yoga. It teaches them that exer
cise can be fun."
The other group acts as the
"control." receiving informa
tion about heart healthy living,
which they are asked to incor
porate into their lives on their
own. All of the participants are
screened at the start and end of
the the 12 weeks in a variety of
areas, from BMI (body mass
index) to blood pressure, cho
lesterol and other related
health indicators.
City resident Debbie
Thompson and her niece,
Debbie King, are both partici
pants in the community cohort.
Thompson, a homemaker, said
she doesn't have to wait for the
exit screening to know her
health has improved.
"I love it. It has done a lot
for me," the 54 year-old said of
STEPS. "I started in April and
my blood pressure's gone
down considerably."
The project, which was
piloted with a group of just
under 50 women on campus in
2009, also garnered encourag
ing results, prompting leaders
to seek funding to expand it
this year, said Dr. Cynthia
Williams Brown, chair of
WSSU's Human Performance
and Sport Science Department,
who created STEPS.
"What we found with that
(initial) program was from the
first 12 weeks, the women that
participated had decreases in
their risk factors," explained
Brown, who has served at the
university for the last 14 years.
"It was very successful ... all
of the women had some kind
of positive change."
This time around, more
than 160 women have taken
part in STEPS, which is fund
ed by a two-year grant from
the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services. Project
leaders hope to reach 350
women by the project's culmi
nation. Among those who have
participated so far are three sis
ters: Jeanette Kelley, Frieda
Thompson and Earlyne
Martin. Martin is participating
in the information group, while
Kelley, 63, and Thompson, 51,
are participants.
"Our mother had diabetes.
so we're just trying to take care
of ourselves," Thompson, an
accountant, said of the three
sisters' motivation to join the
program.
Thompson and Kelley took
part in a kickboxing class held
at WSSU on Tuesday. Both
women say they feel better and
eat healthier since starting
STEPS.
"It's really a good pro
gram, a fantastic program,"
said Kelley, a retired teacher's
assistant for Northwest Child
Development. "It teaches us
how to eat and what to eat."
King, 46, says she has
dropped 10 pounds since start
ing the project 11 weeks ago.
Despite being on disability due
to complications from some
old sports injuries, the Surry
County native says she stayed
active even before joining
STEPS, as a member of the
local line dancing group the
Jazzy Ladies.
"1 love to exercise; I love to
dance," she declared. "The
doctor told me to do as much
as I can."
King says the people are
the best part of STEPS.
"It's the way they interact
with the people. They never
judge you, they always try to
help you to eat better and to
exercise," she said of Booker
and Project Coordinator
Tarreyca Taylor. "They have
some good people up here.
They give you a lot of informa
tion on everything."
Taylor, a 2011 alumna of
Elizabeth City State
University, said the relation
ships the women build through
STEPS are an important com
ponent of the program.
"We want them to form
friendships so that they can
exercise outside of the pro
gram as well," she explained.
"They help each other out."
If the project is successful,
it could be a big step in pre
venting heart disease in local
women and beyond. Brown
said.
"If we can prove that some
of the strategies that we've
been using in this program
actually work for African
American women, then we can
seek funding to do it on a larg
er scaler," she said. "Our goal
really is sustainability. We try
to give women strategies that
they can implement after the
program ... it's something that
they can take with them."
The next STEPS session
begins in August. For more
information, call 336-750
8915 or email tay
lort@wssu.edu.
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SBC
frontpage A1
tant time for them, Bill
Leonard, the James & Marilyn
Dunn Chair of Baptist Studies
at Wake Forest University, said
about Luter's election.
But Leonard believes that
the bigger questions are if the
organization can diversify its
leadership and listen to minor
ity voices after Luter s term
ends in two years.
"The real test is not the
election," said Leonard. "The
teal test is if they will be will
ing to diversify power in the
denomination in its board and
^The struggle of SBC to
expand its numbers by attract
ing minorities is shared by
many predominately white
denominations, according to
Leonard, the founding dean ot
the Divinity School at Wake.
The SBC has made progress
over the years. Currently, 20
percent of its members are
minorities. Local member
churches include African
American, Hispanic and Asian
congregations and even an
Arabic church in Kemersvule.
Rev. Eddie Honeycutt, pas
tor of the largely white First
Baptist Church of
Stanleyville, said Luter is a
good man for the job. During
mission trips to New Orleans
to help in the aftermath of
Katrina, Honeycutt learned
how Luter was "doing tremen
dous things in the communi
tyeven when his own church
was flooded.
Honeycutt, who has been
in SBC ministry for 27 years,
said he hoped the election
would help disprove notions
that the SBC is still a discrim
inatory organization. He said
his own church is reaching out
to local Africa American fami
lies, some of whom have
joined his congregation.
"We're called to reach all
people of all nations, and if
we're going to do that in all
nations, we need to be willing
to do that in our neighbor
hood," said Honeycutt. "...We
need to break down barriers
and see us all as God s people
and work together."
Rev. Reuban Gilliam,
who's pastored the predomi
Revs. Mike ana cuttre
Robinson
nately African-American
North Winston Baptist Church
since he founded it in 1989,
has served on several commit
tees with Luter and knows him
well. He said it's taken many
years and a lot of work to get
Luter elected, but that his pres
idency definitely shows the
SBC is moving in the right
direction.
Gilliam said Luter, like
President Barack Obama, is
the first African American to
hold his particular office, but
that, like President Obama,
Luter was elected because of
his abilities, not his skin color.
"He proved himself by
doing what other people talk
about and putting it into prac
tice," said Gilliam, who
believes Luter can attract new
congregants to the SBC, which
has seen its membership
decline for the last five years.
Luter's election is good
news to Revs. Mike and Claire
Robinson, who co-pastor
Redeeming Faith Baptist
Church, which is in the
process of applying to the
SBC.
"I think it's an excellent
move to have a minority as
head, not just for minorities,
but for everybody - he repre
sents everybody," said Mike
Robinson, whose fledgling
church currently meets at
Trinity Glenn nursing home.
The couple said that they
were drawn to the SBC par
tially by its outreach "to all
people." They said the election
of Luter is a reflection of that.
"Church is not about divi
sion it's about diversity, it's
about the inclusion of all," said
Claire Robinson.
^CXD3aSE!SZ^n
OLDSALEM.ORG
336-711-7350
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