Help Your Neighbor, Earn for School, Make A Difference

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. - Sept. 23, 2018 - PRLog -- AmeriCorps Safe Routes to Health at the Michigan Fitness Foundation (SR2H) program was developed by assessing barriers and opportunities to better understand and address unmet health needs through health, wellness, and physical activity programs in select counties in underserved low-income communities with high obesity rates across Michigan.

Nutrition programs follow the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and will be presented to communities at farmers markets, schools, communities, faith-based organizations, worksites, retail, and health care locations. Recreational programs will follow the CDC Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans and will be presented to communities by using local, regional, and state trails, parks, pathways, blueways and recreation centers.

Michigan Fitness Foundation and Berrien County partner MSU Extension along with multilevel community partners have 4 local half-time AmeriCorps member positions available, with interviews taking place this week. AmeriCorps members will connect citizens in underserved areas to multigenerational health, wellness, and physical activity resources through the following seven comprehensive health, wellness, and physical activity program components:

·         Community Festivals & Events

·         Food Navigators at Farmers Markets,

·         Fresh Conversations at senior centers

·         Health through Literacy at local libraries

·         Home Cooking: Shop and Savor at area grocery stores and markets

·         Get Outside: Trails, Parks, & the Great Outdoors excursions

·         Recreation Sampler via Rec-Connect™

Half-time AmeriCorps members serve a minimum of 900 hours over 11 months – approximately 20-25 hours a week. This is an ideal opportunity for students, parents, seniors, or those looking to build transferable skills for a new career, and for those that are interested in giving back to their community. These service positions each provide an annual living allowance of $6,000 paid bi-weekly. Upon successful completion of service, members are eligible for the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $2960 which can be used to repay qualified student loans and to pay current educational expenses at eligible institutions of higher education and training.

The SR2H service year is an opportunity to develop real-world skills through hands-on service. By engaging in a diverse range of programs and projects, members will have the opportunity for a meaningful year of service in low-income communities, commit to civic engagement through community health, wellness, and physical fitness programs, and gain valuable professional development through activities such as writing, digital marketing, program-event coordination, volunteer recruitment, and volunteer management while engaging with leaders in the private, public, and non-profit sectors.

AmeriCorps service year alumni have used their experience as a stepping stone to the next level of education, whether they are high school graduates who wants to take a year before pursuing a college degree, or college graduates who want an opportunity to make real change in a real community. Employers, higher education institutions and graduate programs value the skills and experiences developed by service-year alums. As AmeriCorps members, senior citizens have chosen to give back to their communities while sharing their expertise and supplementing their income. Most recently, AmeriCorps now permits member 55 and older to transfer their education awards to their children, foster-children, or grandchildren. From those looking to gain experience to those rich with a lifetime of experience, AmeriCorps members have been lifting up their fellow Americans for nearly three decades.

Prospective employers view service-year alums as motivated, flexible, and outcome-oriented, with valuable skills and training. AmeriCorps service year alumni have gone onto successful careers in a variety of fields, including technology, consulting, education, government, nonprofits, and the arts. The employers most dedicated to hiring AmeriCorps and Peace Corps alums are designated as Employers of National Service, and include Disney, Comcast, Delta Airlines, National Park Service, and many more.

Through SR2H, communities will work together to help residents learn how make their health and fitness a priority, so they can be inspired to lead a longer, healthier, and more fulfilling life.

To learn more and to apply, visit http://saferoutestohealth.org/join-us/become-an-americorp....