Author, Danny De Los Santos, is Social Media Coordinator for ACTIVE Life

Think Your Community Has What it Takes?  

September 1 will be an important day for IT’S TIME TEXAS. It marks our first annual Healthy at H-E-B Community Challenge! The Challenge is an eight-week competition that allows cities and towns to compete against each other to see which can mobilize the most healthy action.

Communities are grouped by population, and a winning community from each category (small, mid, and large) will be identified. The Challenge is structured to allow citizens of all communities at different levels to get involved and earn points. Through our Challenge website, participants will earn points by logging the following activities:

• Mayor: To reach eligibility, a community’s mayor must sign the IT’S TIME TEXAS Pledge and may upload a video in which she/he challenges a rival community’s Mayor.
• Community: Mayors can significantly increase their community’s score by facilitating a community-wide health event. Communities are encouraged to stress fun, creativity, and inclusivity when designing their event.
• Schools: Schools have the opportunity to increase their community’s score by participating in a number of ways. Superintendents, school board members, principals, and PTA members can sign the School Pledge. Schools can submit a photo displaying their IT’S TIME TEXAS pride. Schools can organize community projects and are encouraged to partner with other community organizations to design and implement their projects.
• Organizations & Agencies: These institutions can earn points for their communities by creating healthy community projects. Organizations and Agencies are encouraged to partner with one another in the design and implementation of their projects.
• Individuals: Individuals are strongly encouraged and can significantly increase their community’s score by taking part in H-E-B’s Ready, Set, Move! challenge (example below). Individuals can also earn points by making an IT’S TIME Statement online or uploading an IT’S TIME Motivated Video.

The winning communities from each of the above categories will receive a Healthy at H-E-B Community Challenge trophy, special recognition from leading state government officials, press and media relations support and acknowledgement, and a sign designating them as that year’s Healthy at H-E-B Community Challenge-winning community.

Getting involved and earning points for your community can be easy and fun! As mentioned before, individuals are encouraged to log their activities in both our Challenge and H-E-B’s Ready, Set, Move! challenge for additional points. By tracking 150 minutes of physical activity a week through the Ready, Set, Move! challenge site, you be will be entered into an individual drawing for several grand prizes! The more weeks you enter and log your 150 minutes, the more chances you have to win!

To demonstrate how simple completing and logging 150 minutes of physical activity can be, we encouraged our intern, Jane Marie Agnew, to spend some time at a park and document her activities.

The challenge is designed to carry out our mission by engaging, educating, and encouraging all citizens of Texas to lead a healthier lifestyle and ultimately create a healthier state. Using the element of friendly competition, our hope is to join together all Texas communities for a positive and rewarding experience.

For a list of rules and eligibility requirements for the Healthy at H-E-B Community Challenge, please visit http://hebcommunitychallenge.com.

Danny is a senior communication and journalism major at St. Edward’s University. He was born and raised in Weslaco, Texas, a small town in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley. Danny discovered his love for a healthy, active lifestyle running on Town Lake. With every run, he reaffirms his commitment to spreading health. For more, visit the Meet The Bloggers page.