Healthy Savannah AND YMCA Celebrate Two-year Milestone with Healthy Walk on Truman Linear Park Trail

SAVANNAH, Ga. - March 1, 2022 - PRLog -- (SAVANNAH, GA) What started as a simple way to get out of the house at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic is gearing up for a big milestone.

Healthy Walk, a grass-roots initiative to explore Savannah area trails and walkways, will celebrate its two-year anniversary on Tuesday, March 22. Healthy Savannah (https://healthysavannah.org/) and the YMCA of Coastal Georgia (https://ymcaofcoastalga.org/) are inviting the public to join them at 7:30 a.m. for a walk on the Truman Linear Park Trail (https://trumanlinearparktrail.com/).

As administrators of the five-year, $3.4 million grant called Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) (https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/state-local-programs/reach/index.htm), the organizations are using the funds to foster sustainable health equity among Black residents in low-wealth neighborhoods by increasing the availability of high-quality nutrition; promoting physical activity through creating greater access to safe places to walk, run, bike and play; and encouraging stronger connections between people and the healthcare providers who serve them.

Like every other Tuesday morning, rain or shine, for the past two years, Kreissler and Armand Turner, physical activity manager at YMCA of Coastal Georgia, will lead the anniversary walk. The two-mile trek will start out at the Scarborough Sports Complex (http://www.savannahsportscouncil.com/facilities/scarborou...) at Skidaway Road at Bonabella and wind through the Bacon Park (https://baconparkgolf.com/) area on the Truman Linear Park Trail before returning to the start location. The trail is level and accessible, with wide, paved walkways and highly visible pedestrian crosswalks.

In conjunction with the REACH grant funding they administer, Healthy Savannah and the "Y" are also participating in the national initiative, Active People, Healthy Nation (https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/activepeoplehealthynation/index.html), to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027. According to data from the CDC (https://www.cdc.gov/), only 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 5 high school students fully meet physical activity guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities.

Healthy Savannah has posted a map of area trails at healthysavannah.org/healthy-walks-2021/ Walkers are encouraged to share their experiences by tagging photos and videos with #HealthyWalks and #ActivePeople. Healthy Savannah also streams its live walks at https://www.facebook.com/healthysav.

To join the anniversary community walk on March 22, please meet up in the parking area at Scarborough Sports Complex, Skidaway at Bona Bella Ave, Savannah, GA 31406, and remember to bring a mask. The walk will start at 7:30 a.m. and last about an hour. For more information on upcoming Healthy Walks, visit the Healthy Savannah Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/healthysav.