Kalamazoo is a community on the move, and by that we mean head down, legs pistoning and arms pumping.
For months now runners and joggers could be seen out on city's streets and sidewalks, sometimes in groups, sometimes on their own, but always moving toward their goal of being part of the first Kalamazoo Marathon set for this Sunday, May 8.
Mark Sikkila is one of those runners.
Since December he has been training to make a run at the marathon. He averages 50 miles each week.
"I'm a computer nerd by trade and that basically says I should never be able to run or do anything athletic," Sikkila says. "This is my way of challenging myself."
The marathon is part of the annual
Borgess Run for the Health of It, the local road race that has been drawing runners to the area for more than 30 years. The marathon emerged from the half-marathon the run has featured for many years. This year, both the marathon and half-marathon begin at 7:30 a.m. and end when the last runners in each event cross the finish line.
Sikkila, of Kalamazoo, has been running in one of Borgess's Run Camps to prepare for the race. Although he's run his share of 5Ks, keeping pace on a 26.2-mile course is new for him.
"A friend of mine tricked me into it," Sikkila says. "She told me about the run camp and told me I should join and train for the half-marathon. She also asked me to run with her and a couple of her friends. I liked the social aspect of this."
Then his friend talked him into running the full marathon, saying that the half-marathon wouldn't be challenging enough. Sikkila's response: "You have to be kidding me."
Nope, no joke and he's in for the long haul.
Across Kalamazoo, runners who had been part of the race for many years wanted to get their city on the marathon circuit, says Blaine Lam, a five-time marathoner and race director for the Borgess Run for the Health of It.
People were asking how to sign up even before formal announcement of the event took place. Not surprising for the city that's home to the state's largest running club.
Now, more than 1,300 marathoners are expected and numbers also are up for the half-marathon that also will take place over the weekend. Organizers expect 2,000 people to finish that race. There could be as many as 2,000 5K runners, along with 500 walkers and more than 2,000 youngsters in the Meijer Kids Fun Run.
The course winds through Kalamazoo's historic neighborhoods, Western Michigan University's campus and Business Technology and Research Park, along bike trials and parks, so runners get a glimpse of the community.
For the runners coming here from 500 different communities from across the United States and five other countries what might be less obvious than the view is the movement toward sustaining healthier lifestyles in Southwest Michigan, one of the inspirations for the race.
To keep the momentum going once the runners have left the field, a new community-wide initiative is being launched to give youngsters the power to eat healthier and live more actively.
Leaders from business, education, and the nonprofit sectors have worked for more than a year to develop a plan -- "Champions for Healthy Kids" -- to bring about policy changes that will make Kalamazoo a healthier place for young people growing up in the area and make it easier for children to make healthy choices.
"By the time a child is 5 years old the body type they have is most likely going to stay with them for the rest of their life," says Ken Dettloff, fitness director for the
Kalamazoo County YMCA. "We're focusing on kids for a number of reasons, especially because in early childhood we have an opportunity to change them for life."
Although not everyone would agree, Dettloff says a reason to focus on kids is they are the change agents in their own families.
"I have heard anecdotal stories on why parents have quit smoking and wear seat belts," Dettloff says. "It's because their first-grader comes home from school and gets in their face and challenges them on smoking or reminds them to wear their seat belt.
"I'm surprised that there's no documented research on the power of kids as change agents in their families."
The "Champions for Healthy Kids" plan may have been created by adults, but organizers agree that it's the children who will play a major role in its success.
The plan has been developed as part of
Pioneering Healthier Communities, a national movement funded primarily by YMCAs of the USA in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control, corporate and foundation donors. Kalamazoo's YMCA received a grant for $60,000 and an additional $20,000 from Fifth Third Bank to fund the plan.
More than 160 communities nationwide are participating in the initiative.
"Concern about the state of the health of our young people is very real," says Lam, a member of the Healthier Communities steering committee. "Our children are vulnerable because of obesity, too much time in front of a screen, consumption of foods high in fat that are readily available and so we need to work with families and schools and communities on how to begin to reverse that."
Considering the consequences, it is good to know that communities already participating in Pioneering Healthier Communities are experiencing successes.
One is in Pittsburgh where kids and families who live in areas where nutritious foods are hard to find now have access to fresh fruits and vegetables through a virtual farmers market that sells high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables for up to 40 percent less than supermarket prices.
Lam said existing programs in Kalamazoo such as
"Girls on the Run" and the
Nature Center's "No Child Left Inside" which encourages children get outdoors, are further examples of programs that can help children be more healthy.
Other ideas will be explored during a free summit May 11 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Fetzer Center on Western Michigan University's Kalamazoo campus. The Champions for Healthy Kids Summit is for leaders of schools, local businesses, nonprofit organizations, and governmental organizations. The summit is also open to parents, students and others with a passion for making Kalamazoo County healthier for children and families.
Tyler Norris, nationally renowned social entrepreneur whose passion is improving the health of people and sustained vitality of our environments, will lead the summit.
"The summit will include a first look at the problem, provide information about how vulnerable we are, and (explore) what we're going to do as a community," Lam says.
Dettloff also has created a community toolkit to help residents make plans and establish goals that will help youngsters grow up healthier.
"This is about changing policy," Dettloff says. "Instead of a program, this plan tries to engage the entire Kalamazoo community, ranging from individuals to businesses and government and anyplace that serves kids because the message has to be consistent wherever they go."
As a "for instance," Dettloff cites a policy that could be adopted by school boards calling for food sold at concession stands to meet certain nutritional standards. And changes could be made at church potlucks that are heavy on macaroni and cheese and light on entrees containing vegetables and the inevitable donuts and coffee after the service.
"This is all about changing policy so that healthy choices are simply more available," Dettloff says.
Jane C. Parikh is a freelance reporter and writer with more than 20 years of experience and also is the owner of In So Many Words based in Battle Creek. Photos by Erik Holladay.Sydney Free, left, and Spencer Brown do drills during practice at the Maple Street YMCA in Kalamazoo, Mich. Children across the city are being encouraged to be part of programs that keep them physically fit and moving.
YMCA tennis coach Matt Olsen works with kids during their lesson at teh Maple Street YMCA.
Olivia Oosterbaan, left, and Cougar Wootton warm up for tennis lessons with a jog around the courts at the Maple Street YMCA in Kalamazoo, Mich.