Article about Manchester KY

Above: Sister Mary Glass, CIJ, at right, talked with Polly Duncan-Collum, at left, Director of Peace and Justice for the Diocese of Lexington, and Sr. Alice Schmersal, middle, Pastoral Associate at St. Ann Catholic Church, Manchester KY. This photo was taken during a visit to St. Ann's in May, 2010.

Hello again - after a bit of summer-ish delays, we're ready to get back to blogging. (Schools are already starting up here in KY!).

Here is a link to a syndicated article from the Washington Post that looked at obesity in the small town of Manchester KY, which is located right here in the Diocese of Lexington. (This link is actually from the online site for a Connecticut newspaper - the story was picked up by a number of newspapers nationwide. The story was published in the Lexington Herald Leader on July 13, 2010)

http://www.theday.com/article/20100718/OP05/307189920/1019&town=

I recently spoke with Sr. Alice Schermsal, the Pastoral Associate at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Manchester and we talked a little bit about the article and any reaction it stirred up in Manchester. Sr. Alice noted that some people she had talked with felt the article was too narrow in focus. The reporter wrote about only one family (a divorced dad with two daughters) and only included comments from the town mayor, a pharmacist, a professor of kinesiology and one resident who lost about 60 lbs and now works as a professional trainer. The reporter also noted that the glow of night lights at the intersection leading into Manchester is mostly from fast food restaurants.

(Note: Manchester is a beautiful place, as you can see from the photo views of St. Ann's "front yard," above and her "back yard" below. The church is actually situated on 40 acres, and the setting is truly lovely. The reporter did end his story noting the view of the beautiful valley, although he goes on to say the population does not reflect so well on the town).

Sr. Alice went on to say, however, that other people did acknowledge that looking around, it's clear there are a number of overweight people in the area, including overweight children. [Reading the article, the kinesiology professor conducted a study of 277 4th and 5th graders in 7 local schools and determined that almost half were overweight or obese. This does not bode well for these kids' health in the future, since being overweight is a risk factor for developing a raft of problems, such as diabetes, heart and circulatory problems, joint problems, etc.]

Sr. Alice and Sr. Mary Glass, who also lives in Manchester and who has been a nurse for over 50 years, attended a women's group meeting earlier this month. The group held a very good discussion about mounting a program to encourage fitness, healthy eating and weight loss - -a "Give 20 in 2011" sort of theme. Sr. Alice feels at the very least, the article will give some momentum to putting this plan and possibly others in motion. She thinks this is something that St. Ann's could help get started.

Health education and promoting healthy lifestyles is clearly an important part of meeting the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of families and individuals!