Health Depts. receive $402,000 in grants for 'We Choose Health-Southernmost Illinois' | Community Spirit

FRANKLIN AND WILLIAMSON COUNTY, IL (KFVS) - Local health officials gathered at Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Department on October 17 to kick off "We Choose Health--Southernmost Illinois."

In August, Jackson County and Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Departments together received over $402,000 in grants from the Illinois Department of Public Health. The health department says these funds will be used by the seven health departments which cover the southernmost 16 counties to prevent chronic disease. Each of the health departments will work with their community's health coalition to transform their community and this region into a place where the healthy choice is the easy choice.

"Each local health department has chosen from a menu of strategies and will work with their healthy community coalition to implement their chosen strategies," said Miriam Link-Mullison, director of Jackson County Health Department. "The five strategies being implemented in Southernmost Illinois will increase the number of parks, ball fields and other outdoor spaces which are smoke free, increase the availability of smoke free multi-unit housing, support worksites which adopt wellness policies, expand the number of schools with school health programming, and increase the number of facilities which open their doors to the community for physical activity."

For more information about "We Choose Health," you can visit their Facebook page.

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