In 2003, the Foundation reached a new milestone in its commitment to
continually expand its reach in the prevention of heart disease in Minnesota.
During this period, the Education Services Division facilitated over 460
independent programs, a 37 percent increase over the previous year, to diverse
audiences located throughout the state. Programs included special events, a
wide range of prevention-based program and services and a growing list of
established community partnerships. These programs made us a part of over 125
communities, both large and small. The highlights of the MHIF Education
Services Division 2003 activities have been summarized as follows:
Special Events
Our special events serve as highly visible community education offerings
primarily to audiences in the Twin Cities metro area. We began our special
events calendar in February with the In Touch With Heart Health communitywide
screening and education program. This program has been offered for the past 13
years in commemoration of February as National Heart Month and represents our
longest running special event. The Annual Spring Prevention Program, held in
May, addressed the topic of Women and Heart Disease and featured cardiologist
Valerie Ulstad, MD, who shared current information and research findings on the
topic. The evening program ended on a lighter note with comedienne Susan Vass
sharing her humorous and insightful “50 Things I’ve Learned So Far In Life”
presentation. The Women’s 10- Week Walk/Run Training Clinic was offered June
through August at three locations in the state to include Minneapolis,
Northfield and St. Cloud and attracted over 300 participants. This program,
introduced in 2002, was designed to encourage entry-level female exercisers to
participate in a fun, structured group-training program and benefit from the
ongoing guidance of an all-women’s coaching staff and informational
presentations from experts in cardiovascular health and physical fitness. The
program also encouraged participants to enlist in the RYKA Take Fitness to
Heart 5K Women’s Walk/Run and 10K Women’s Run held in August in Minneapolis,
the proceeds of which supported women’s heart health education programming at
the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation. Our final special event in 2003, A
Season of Heart-Healthy Cooking, was held in October and featured local
culinary specialists Ragavan Iyer and Paulette Mitchell who delighted attendees
with their culinary expertise through interactive, low-fat cooking
demonstrations.
HeartMatters Community Programs and Services
Our community programs and services, referred to as our HeartMatters program,
include health screenings, topic presentations, interactive displays and health
education classes/seminars. These programs annually reach tens of thousands of
Minnesotans with a prevention message. The HiTECH Hearts Program, our main
school-based initiative, visited over 230 Minnesota school sites reaching over
30,000 4th grade students in 2003. Worksites continue to serve as a valuable
environment to deliver an important prevention message to established audiences
and we maintain a growing list of corporations annually benefiting from our
services. Also, our programming takes us to a variety of other community sites
throughout the state, to include health care facilities, community education
centers and faith communities, providing us with additional opportunities for
heart disease prevention education.
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A fourth-grade student interacts with the HiTECH Heart during a recent visit to
her school with guidance from Barb Rapacz, MHIF Health Educator. The HiTECH
Heart program reached over 30,000 students throughout the state.
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Community Partnerships
The Foundation is involved in a number of local and statewide prevention
initiatives advanced though established community partnerships that prove
invaluable to us in our efforts to reach and serve defined high risk
populations. Our partners include, but are not limited to, religious
organizations, community service groups, local heath centers, neighborhood
associations, voluntary health agencies, public agencies and other nonprofit
groups. In an effort to further expand collaborative relationships with
organizations serving communities of color and American Indians, the Foundation
launched a new pilot initiative in 2003 referred to as the ReachOut for Heart
Health Mini-grant Program. The program provides support, through funding and/or
direct services, to recognized at-risk communities involved in local
cardiovascular health promotion/disease prevention projects or events. The
Foundation realized tremendous success through this pilot program awarding over
$12,000 in mini-grants during 2003 with plans of continuing this initiative
into 2004 and beyond.
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Penny Mathieu, RN, MHIF Health Educator, advises a
participant of the Community Fitness Today-Aerobic Class Appreciation Week on
blood pressure at Sabathani Community Center in Minneapolis. This event
represented one of many community initiatives funded through the MHIF ReachOut
for Heart Health Mini-grant Program in 2003.
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2003 Annual Report home page
