CELEBRATING ONE YEAR IN EAST HAWAII!
On Saturday, November 5, Blue Zones Project® held its First Year Anniversary Celebration at Sangha Hall in Hilo. More than 700 East Hawaii residents enjoyed gardening demonstrations and activities, cooking demonstrations, Blue Zones® inspired food samples, a volunteer fair, live entertainment, free massages, natural movement activities, keiki games, giveaways, and prizes!
The anniversary event was all about celebrating the organizations in our community that are working towards making the healthy choice the easy choice for East Hawaii residents. Blue Zones Project Approved™ organizations were on hand to share in the well-being celebration — KTA Superstores, Sweet Cane Café, Hawaii First Federal Credit Union, First Assembly of God, and Chiefess Kapiolani Elementary School. Organizations who are working towards becoming Approved were also there, including WikiFRESH, Abundant Life Natural Foods, The Food Basket, Hawaii CC, Hilo Meishoin, County of Hawaii Planning Department, Saladmaster Simply 4 Health, Sure Foundation Puna, and USDA. Mahalo to everyone for contributing on this day and every day to the health and well-being of East Hawaii!
The event was a blast – we hope you were all able to join us in the festivities! Special mahalo to gardeners, Bill Miller and Russell Nagata; the National Guard Youth Challenge, and all of our awesome volunteers and partner organizations for their time and contributions to making this celebration a fun and wonderful learning experience for our community!
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NOURISH YOUR NEIGHBOR FOOD DRIVE
Plant Slant and Volunteering came together for a dual dose of well-being. In celebration of National Food Day, Blue Zones Project held a “Nourish Your Neighbor” Food Drive from October 10 – October 24, to collect ingredients to make a plant-slant, one-pot Vegetarian Chili for East Hawaii families in need. Then, on October 29, more than 70 East Hawaii volunteers came together to help sort and distribute the collected food donations to nearly 180 East Hawaii families.
We want to thank our East Hawaii volunteers for contributing their time and muscle, and the organizations who served as collection sites or contributed donations to this worthy cause. Mahalo to KTA Superstores, Hawaii State Department of Health, Hawaii Electric Light Company, Hawaii County Fire Departments, The Food Basket, ProVision Solar, Kay’s Drive Inn, Cost-U-Less, and the National Guard Youth Challenge. You are all such great partners and champions of community well-being!
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KTA PROMOTES “FAMILY-FIRST” CONECPTS WITH FUN HALLOWEEN EVENT
KTA Superstores hosted a Free Haunted House and Costume Contest event this Halloween. Blue Zones Project attended in support of this fun “family-first” event and hosted a healthy treat table with fresh fruit rockets that kids had a blast making and eating! To make things interesting, all costumes entered in the contest needed to be home-made to encourage families to spend time together making their costumes. Mahalo to KTA for inviting us to share in the fun festivities!
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WAIAKEA HIGH SCHOOL WORKING TOWARDS APPROVAL
On October 31, Waiakea High School—who is working towards becoming a Blue Zones Project Approved school—hosted a Blue Zones Project Health and Well-being Day. Teachers and staff learned all about Blue Zones Project and how our community is working together to make healthier choices easier in East Hawaii.
Gayle Yogi of Saladmasters and Simply4Health provided a plant-slant cooking demonstration with her famous ABC Salad made simply of apples, beats, and carrots. It’s incredible that just the juice of an orange provides so much flavor to the salad! Gayle also whipped up a wonderful rice-noodle and vegetable dish. After lunch, teachers and staff enjoyed an afternoon of our Power of Purpose Workshop. Mahalo to Waiakea High School for taking the next steps to improving the health and well-being of your teachers, staff, students, and our community!
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The University of Hawaii at Hilo campus is working towards becoming a Blue Zones Project Approved worksite. The university has already created a wellness committee, hosted a Blue Zones Project presentation for faculty and staff, and participated in a Purpose Workshop to help staff and faculty reconnect with their gifts, passions and purpose. Keep up the great work, UH Hilo!
Hawaii First Federal Credit Union celebrated their achievement of becoming the FIRST Blue Zones Project Approved worksite in East Hawaii on October 21. Their celebration was open to all of their members who enjoyed Blue Zones inspired food samples and activities. Congratulations again to Hawaii First for their commitment to health and well-being in the workplace.
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Questions? Email BlueZonesProjectEastHawaii@healthways.com
Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/bluezonesprojecteasthawaii
