GoWayneGo hires new educator
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on October 22, 2015 1:46 PM
Naisha Coley had several reasons for applying as health educator for GoWayneGo.
Of course, there are the family ties -- her retired military father and mother, Delmus and Phyllis Coley, are from Goldsboro.
She was also looking for a job in her field. She has an undergraduate degree in pre-pharmacy and a master's in public health with a concentration in health education and prevention.
But ultimately, the real draw for any job is its ability to provide a sense of purpose.
"One of my passions is working with the community in health advocacy," Miss Coley said. "I felt like this would give me the one-on-one.
"The areas that most appealed to me were doing health advocacy through social media and social marketing. That was what really stood out to me."
GoWayneGo is still a relatively new initiative in Wayne County, having been launched in 2013. It began as a partnership between WATCH, or Wayne Action Teams for Community Health, Wayne Memorial Hospital and the Health Department.
The underlying theme was to encourage the community to get healthier, inviting residents to take the "5-3-2-1-0" pledge. The numbers represent several goals -- five servings of fruits and vegetables and day, three square meals, no more than two hours of screen time a day, one hour of exercise and zero sugary drinks.
The fluorescent green shirts bearing the GoWayneGo logo popped up all around the county, a friendly reminder to become more responsible about eating and activity habits.
Having a health educator is the next step in advancing the mission. Hired by WATCH through a three-year Duke Endowment Grant, Miss Coley has already devised several goals and directions to take the role.
"My goal is as a health educator, to work with day cares, businesses, churches and local organizations to adopt healthy practices. Those can be physical activities as well as eating practices," she said.
It's a process, she explained, and behavioral changes take time. Some of the challenges may be access -- to healthy food, to outlets conducive to exercise.
"But I always say through health education, we're educating people and we're trying to get them to change behavior," she said. "One of the more important things that we have to understand, even just spreading knowledge is enough."
One of her first efforts has been to open the dialogue, talking with leaders and targeting the faith-based community.
"(We're) just assessing what kind of issues they have dealing with health and healthy eating. I try to understand the demographics, trying to get programs that would benefit from this," she said, citing an example she recently discovered. "One church has a lot next to it. We're trying to implement a walking trail, trying to give them a kick-off campaign and measure how much they can walk."
Another idea, stemming from the lack of access to fresh produce, has her working with "corner stores."
"We created a guide for store owners as far as carrying fresh fruits in their stores, where they can go," she said. "We're here to help them, (how and where to) store the fruits, help to advertise that they carry them."
She also has an eye out on how to create opportunities for activity, as well as incorporating GoWayneGo into existing events. The YMCA, for example, has its annual Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day. Mall walking is also a popular thing for many.
And there are already a number of walking trails in the area.
"A lot of people don't have access to a gym, transportation. You don't need exercise equipment or a gym membership to get out there and be active," she said.
Efforts like the GoWayneGo community fall walks are another good option, not only for the exercise component but also a chance for a group activity. Currently there is a schedule of walks held every Saturday morning around the county (see below).
GoWayneGo also is also developing its presence on social media, with a Facebook page and a website, www.gowaynego.org. The website includes scheduled activities, healthy recipes and suggestions for other ways to exercise at home.
Miss Coley said she is excited about the prospects and is looking forward to building partnerships in the community.
"It's fun for me because it's something I'm passionate about and something that I enjoy," she said. "This is something that's important and it's going to be forever for me. I think it involves a whole collaboration with doctors, nurses, health care providers and it involves the community as well."
From now through Christmas, fall walks are scheduled on the following dates and locations, from 9 until 10 a.m.: Oct. 31, the three-mile trek at University of Mount Olive, meeting at the Steele Library, 119 W. Main Street, Mount Olive; Nov. 7, Walnut Creek Village, meet at pool, 508 Lakeshore Drive; Nov. 21, Dees Park, Railroad and Mill streets in Pikeville; Dec. 12, Seven Springs History Tour, meet at Neuse River boat ramp; Dec. 19, Stoney Creek Rugged Crawl, corner of E. Elm and St. and Stoney Creek Parkway; and Dec. 27, Old Waynesborough Park trails, met at back parking lot.