Pittsburgh Partners to Score a Touchdown
Posted February 3‚ 2010
In a can’t–miss play for the new year‚ two Pittsburgh–based We Can!® supporters—UPMC Health Plan and the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh—have teamed up to spread the word about We Can! to underserved populations in the home of the Steelers.
UPMC Health Plan is a valuable player for We Can!‚ having joined the movement in 2007 and immediately kicked off its programming by forming alliances with the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. One of the trio’s biggest hits was partnering with Armstrong County to help establish it as Pennsylvania’s first We Can! County‚ and to help introduce We Can! curricula into the county’s school system.
The Jewish Community Center (JCC) joined the We Can! team as a community site in June 2008‚ and is already proving itself to be a valuable team player. Together‚ the center and UPMC Health Plan have created and will distribute postcards advertising upcoming We Can! classes on the We Can! Energize Our Families program at the center (January and February 2010) to local doctors’ offices and other community leaders.
“There is a lot of public interest from community members in using the Jewish Community Center,” said Michael Culyba‚ MD‚ Vice President‚ Medical Affairs for UPMC Health Plan. “And we hope that the community takes advantage of its We Can! offerings.”
Culyba notes that a number of factors make working with the center a win–win situation for everyone. They include the center’s two different locations in the city‚ which make it easier for at–risk community members to reach; the center’s involvement in the community through youth programs‚ arts and culture classes‚ and family workshops; and the center’s eager promotion of healthy living to people who might not know how important eating right‚ being more physically active‚ and spending less time in front of the screen are to maintaining a healthy weight and ultimately better long–term health.
In addition to teaming up with the JCC‚ UPMC Health Plan has other key plays lined up in its 2010 playbook.
It will be hosting a We Can! regional training in Pittsburgh on April 27 and 28. The training is open to all‚ and organizers hope to draw We Can! “fans” from Pennsylvania‚ as well as other states, including New Jersey‚ New York‚ West Virginia‚ and Ohio. To find out more about this and eight other We Can! Regional Trainings‚ please visit the We Can! training page.
For more information on the We Can! classes being offered at the Jewish Community Center‚ call 412–521–8011‚ ext. 380.
If you have a story about how you plan to score a field goal for We Can! in 2010 or beyond‚ let us know by dropping us an e-mail at rnania@aed.org or (202) 884–8544.