MORE THAN 2,000 JOIN SOUL STROLL FOR HEALTH 2005:
THE BAY AREA'S LARGEST AFRICAN AMERICAN HEALTH EVENT

MAY 26, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Gloria Brown
650-726-9059, ext 102
www.aachac.org

More than 2,000 people turned out for a walk by the Bay in Soul Stroll for Health 2005, making it the largest African-American-focused event in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Gloria Brown, chair of the event and of Mills-Peninsula’s African American Community Health Advisory Committee, reported that the fourth annual Soul Stroll at Coyote Point Park in San Mateo drew more than 100 volunteers from service clubs, fraternities, sororities and community agencies and organizations such as Jack and Jill Inc. (San Jose and San Francisco Chapters), the California Automobile Association, Delta Sigma Theta, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Chums, Omega Psi Phi, Alpha Phi Alpha, NAACP, Dukes and Duchesses, Peninsula Links and the Bay Area Community Development Corporation.

Forty community agencies manned tables offering information and health screenings, including a contingent of Stanford Medical School students who provided blood pressure and cholesterol checks. Mills-Peninsula volunteers offered fitness testing and free chair massages. Other organizations represented included the California Transplant Donor Network, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, Mission Hospice, American Cancer Society, San Mateo County Commission on Aging and the Health Plan of San Mateo County.

“It’s heartwarming to see Soul Stroll become such a huge success,” Brown said. “We called it victory in 2002 when about 500 people came out to walk. Now we’re at 2,000-plus, including families who traveled here from other states to participate. This all-volunteer event has become a real community tradition.”

This year’s guest host was fitness expert Becky Singleton. Participants in the non-competitive walk chose between three bayside trails for a one- three- or five-mile stroll. The event also included a disc jockey, recreation for children, lunch and prizes.

Soul Stroll for Health is the creation of Mills-Peninsula’s African-American Community Health Advisory Committee, a 30-member coalition of community organizations that includes 23 local churches. The goal is to raise awareness of the importance of physical activity and good nutrition in countering a number of health issues that disproportionately affect African Americans.

Since its inception in 2002, Soul Stroll has evolved into a three-day celebration of health. The weekend begins on Friday night with a private reception honoring “Heroes For Health” in the community. This year nearly 400 people attended the dinner at the Sheraton Hotel in Burlingame to honor Rev. William Bullard, Citibank West Vice President Robert Shoffner and dentist Dr. Brian Swann.

On Sunday, more than 60 local pastors and health ministry representatives capped this year’s activities with a breakfast at Mills Health Center to discuss how they can help continue the health-focused momentum going strong in their congregations all year long.

For more information about Soul Stroll, call Gloria Brown
at 650-726-9059, ext 102.

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The African American Community Health Advisory Committee
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