ALBION – Fleet Feet staff were at the Albion Free Methodist Church on Wednesday to fit people for new pairs of sneakers, including Marie Snyder, front right.

The Albion Running Club is teaming with the Orleans County Health Department in a 16-week “Healthy Orleans” program. The goal a goal to help 40 people become healthier by losing weight and embracing healthier choices, including more nutritious meals.

The Orleans County Health Department received a $15,000 grant from the National Association of County and City Health Officials. The organization (NACCHO) is looking to fund community-based initiatives that promote heathy activities, sustainability and resiliency, said Paul Pettit, health department director in both Orleans and Genesee counties.

Participants in the program pay about $20 towards the pair of shoes (the price varies depending on a participants Body Mass Index, with more obese people paying less). The grant covers $80 towards the cost of the shoes. Fleet Fit sneakers cost an average of $125 to $130. The business provided discounts for about $25 to $30 per shoe.

“Boots” Boutillier, co-owner of Fleet Feet with his wife Ellen, said Fleet Feet does shoe fittings for many businesses in the Rochester area as companies try to promote fitness for employees.

“We’ll go where the people are as opposed to them coming to us,” Boutillier said.

Fleet Feet fitted about 100 people for sneakers last year in the Running Club’s “Fit in 50” program.

This year’s Healthy Orleans effort is a 16-week program versus 50 weeks. The participants meet for a group run/walk at 6 p.m. on Sunday at the Free Methodist Church. They are also encouraged to do at least two other runs/walks during the week, said Brian Krieger, executive director of the Albion Running Club.

The Healthy Orleans program included a grant for 40 shoes. Krieger said those slots filled up quickly and the Running Club used its own funds to pay towards shoes for two other participants.

Krieger said he was pleased to see participants from all over the county, not just from the Albion area.

The 16-week program will culminate with participants completing a 5-kilometer walk/run on Oct. 8 at the Memory Walk and Cross Country Run at Brown’s Berry Patch in Carlton.

Randy LeBaron, pastor of the Free Methodist Church, gets fitted for a pair of sneakers by Pat Wilson, an employee with Fleet Feet and also pastor of the Oakfield-Alabama Baptist Church.

LeBaron said he enrolled in Healthy Orleans to exercise more and eat better.

If people complete the 16-week program, they have their choice for another pair of discounted shoes or a Fitbit activity tracker.

ALBION – The opioid epidemic has reached Orleans County with several recent deaths from heroin overdoses, according to the Genesee-Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse.

The issue has been in the news throughout the region, state and country due to the increase in overdose deaths. In nearby Erie County, the community is on pace to have 500 people die from overdose deaths this year.

GCASA wants to educate Orleans County about the crisis and give insight and help to parents and friends of people struggling with addiction.

GCASA on July 13 will host an informational meeting and Narcan training for the community at GCASA’s Albion Clinic, 249 East Ave. The 7 to 9 p.m. meeting will be in the basement level of the clinic.

“People are struggling out here in our community,” said Kathy Hodgins, director of treatment services for GCASA in Orleans County. “It’s not just the other communities.”

The July 13 session will be include information about treatment options for people who suffer from opioid addiction. Topics will include detox, inpatient and outpatient treatment options, medication assisted therapy options, and community resources.

In addition, Narcan training will be provided and each participant will receive a kit to use in case of an opioid overdose. Narcan can bring someone out of an addicted state, Hodgins said.

This is the first time GCASA is leading a community meeting about the opioid epidemic. Hodgins said GCASA can help people wrestling with addictions, and also provide some support for their families and friends.

“We need to get the word out in our community about what GCASA offers,” Hodgins said.

Participants get discounted sneakers, healthy eating tips, lots of peer support

File photo by Tom Rivers– Fleet Feet personnel were in Albion in January 2015 doing fittings for running shoes as part of a “Fit in 50” program. This photo shows Shelia Lemcke of Albion getting fitted for shoes. A new program starts Sunday and gives 40 people a chance for discounted sneakers if they complete a 16-week program.

ALBION – A new fitness program will start on Sunday with a goal to help 40 people become healthier by losing weight and embracing healthier choices, including more nutritious meals.

The Orleans County Health Department received a $15,000 grant from the National Association of County and City Health Officials. The organization (NACCHO) is looking to fund community-based initiatives that promote heathy activities, sustainability and resiliency, said Paul Pettit, health department director in both Orleans and Genesee counties.

The Health Department is partnering with the Albion Running Club in a 16-week fitness program. Pettit said he saw the success of the “Fit in 50” program by the Running Club last year. That program had a weekly walk or run, and also measured participants’ weight and BMI throughout 2015.

Those measurements over the course of the year showed drops in weight and BMI, Pettit said.

“We tracked biometrics and could show positive data,” Pettit said. “Overall BMIs were down, weight went down, and there were sustained healthy lifestyles.”

Fit in 50 also offered 100 pairs of sneakers for $20 each as part of a grant through the Greater Rochester Health Foundation. The shoes normally would cost about $100.

The new Healthy Orleans program will offer discounted shoes to 40 participants. The program schedule is also compressed to 16 weeks. It will culminate with participants completing a 5-kilometer walk/run on Oct. 8 at the Memory Walk and Cross Country Run at Brown’s Berry Patch.

If they complete the 16 weeks, they have their choice for another pair of discounted shoes or a Fitbit activity tracker.

The kickoff for the program will be this Sunday at 6 p.m. at the Albion Free Methodist Church, 25 South Platt St. The deadline to register for the program was June 10, but there are still several spots open. The Running Club will accept applications until all 40 spots are filled. (To see an application, visit albionrunningclub.com/healthy-orleans.html.)

Brian Krieger is executive director of the Running Club and helped manage the Fit in 50 last year. He said this year’s program welcomes people who want to improve their overall health by reducing their weight, eating healthier and also giving up smoking.

The program will have a nutrition expert meet with the group to discuss how to prepare meals for a healthy and balanced diet.

“One of our initiatives is improving health with focus on chronic disease and healthy living,” Pettit said. “This program will focus on participating in physical activity with classes on healthier eating. Another big component is the peer support.”

Longer-term goals include more drinking fountains at parks

Photo by Kristina Gabalski– Jena Buckwell of the Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation District is working through the recently launched UnBottle Orleans campaign to encourage residents, businesses, museums, government agencies, employers and event planners to give up bottled water and utilize tap water.  This week, Orleans County Master Gardeners decided to work with Buckwell on an agreement to “UnBottle” at meetings and events.

ALBION – UnBottle Orleans is hoping to change the way you think about bottled water. The campaign, which is sponsored by the Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation District, was launched recently to bring attention to the negative environmental, economic and social impacts of bottled water.

Jena Buckwell has been working on the campaign through her AmeriCorps position at the Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation District. She says UnBottle Orleans wants to help residents, businesses, event planners, museums, tourist attractions, government agencies, clubs and organizations make the transition away from bottled water.

“While purchasing bulk water bottles and selling is convenient in some regards, it’s less convenient than simply increasing public access to municipal water,” Buckwell said. “With bottled water, there’s the task and expense of going to get the water, or having it delivered, and also of disposing the bottles properly – which often does not happen. Much of Orleans County is on municipal water, so while making the transition to encouraging event goers and customers to use tap water will absolutely require some re-thinking of our current strategy. In the long-run it requires less effort, money and generates far less waste.”

Buckwell explained that recycling plastic water bottles is not a sustainable or efficient means of dealing with waste generated from bottled water.

“Recycling in and of itself is a high-energy process, and with (the low quality of plastic water bottles), most bottled water plastic does not get recycled,” she said.

The carbon footprint for bottled water is much larger than municipal water, in regards to travel and storage. Buckwell said.

“Bottled water requires the energy intensive process of actually making the bottle, bottling the water, further packaging, transportation, storage, transportation to your home or event, storage in your home, and then (hopefully) transportation to a recycling facility where the energy intensive process of recycling the bottle takes place,” she said. “Tap water requires absolutely none of that.”

The transition phase away from the bottle is critical, she pointed out.

UnBottle Orleans recommends individuals and families try reusable water bottles, preferably stainless steel, but BPA-free plastic (such as Nalgene) is also an option.

“It’s good to keep ease of cleaning in mind when buying a new reusable bottle as people are less likely to use their water bottle if cleaning it is a hassle,” Buckwell said.

She said families can also use water jugs for transporting water when they will be out and about for long periods.

UnBottle Orleans is also working to increase access to public water. “It’ll be a longer term goal,” Buckwell explained. “But as citizens, we have the ability to make the request of our local government that refilling stations and water fountains become the norm throughout our towns, parks, etc. The early stages of our campaign have included discussion with local government and we’ve had really excellent reception. One of our goals is to increase drinking fountains in villages, as well as parks, including along the canal path.”

Buckwell adds that she feels Orleans County is well-suited to make the transition.

“We have excellent drinking water immediately and abundantly available to us,” she said. “Our Health Department is thorough and committed to providing safe drinking water. Additionally, Orleans County is filled with nature lovers and outdoorsmen and women who regularly connect with and see first-hand the environmental damage that is caused by our various habits of consumption, including bottled water, whether it be bottles floating about in a favorite fishing spot or as litter along a hiking path. Making the connection that our habits damage the natural places we love is an important first step.”

Buckwell says community member involvement for campaigning, letter-writing, tabling, etc. is invited and encouraged. Interested residents can contact UnBottle Orleans at unbottleorleans@gmail.com.