Teams promote health and wellness in the workplace and make charitable donations 

Teams were running, jumping, and challenging each other to get healthy during Health Action Council’s Spring Step It Up Challenge. In partnership with MoveSpring, the Step It Up Challenge is a four-week step program that brings employers all the benefits of an official step program without all the administrative hassles, while improving health and wellness. 

Team OSM from Swagelok were winners in both the team and individual categories. Team OSM had 785,950 average total steps and consisted of members, Gary Clapper, Joe Whitthorne, Marleen Esperson, Jonathan Esperson, and Joe Ptacek. Jonathan Esperson from Team OSM was also selected as an individual winner with an impressive 840,756 total steps.

The team received a healthy lunch and a $300 donation to either a local school garden project or Ronald McDonald House Charity.

The competition attracted 55 teams and 544 total participants, earning 118,990,079 total steps, which unlocked $500 group target goal donation to Ronald McDonald House Charities of St. Louis. Team members confirmed that the challenge kept them motivated and more aware of their daily steps. While everyone took home a victory by establishing healthier lifestyles, the second and third place winning teams were:

• 2nd: Walkie Talkies from Beachwood Schools had 532,723 average total steps – Lucia Siupinys, Michelle Mayer, Angie White, Tim Thomas, and AB, winning a healthy lunch and a $200 donation to either a local school garden project or Ronald McDonald House Charity.
• 3rd: Melissa’s Milers from City of Toledo had 441,980 average total steps – Don Czerniak, Dan Gerken, and Melissa Masztak, winning Step It Up swag for their team.

“The challenge was a fun way to motivate one another to reach our goals,” said Angie White from Beachwood City Schools. “We learned healthier habits and ways to add in extra movement each day.”

Three individual winners from the top 15 Steppers were entered into a drawing and randomly selected to win Fitbit Charge 5 devices:

• Jonathan Esperson from Swagelok with 840,756 total steps
• Don Czerniak from City of Toledo with 718,817 total steps
• Arek Cetes from Hitachi Solutions with 623,877 total steps

Mini Challenge Winners:

• David Opperman from City of Toledo won a Fitbit Charge 4 and a Step It Up t-shirt for having over 10,000 steps.
• Demitra Turner from Cuyahoga BDD won a $10 Target gift card for taking a challenge poll.
• Joel Lindstrom from Hitachi Solutions won a $10 Target gift card for taking a challenge poll.
• Justine Ekstrom from Woodruff Sawyer won a $15 Adidas gift card and a Step It Up swag pack for having over 60 active minutes.
• Maggie Tabbert from Cedar Creek won a $10 Panera gift card for completing a stretching challenge.
• Angie Lawler from OHSAA won a Fitbit Charge 4 for the 10,000 steps weekend challenge.
• Phyllis Lightner from Hitachi Solutions won a $15 Home Depot gift card for winning the Facebook pop-up challenge.
• Kaeli Granados from Lake Shore Cryotronics won a $10 Starbucks gift card for sharing a healthy spring recipe.
• Kamara Boatman from City of Toledo won a $10 Target gift card for completing the mindfulness mini challenge.
• Chad Draper from Ashland University  won a Fitbit Charge 4 for having over 10,000 steps.
• Felissa Eafford from Tri-C won a $10 Starbucks gift card for having over 45 active minutes.

Interested in hitting the trails and joining our Summer Step It Up Challenge June 5 – July 2? This summer, take a declaration of healthy living and join us in visiting national landmarks and monuments virtually. Explore our nation’s map and register a team made up of employees, colleagues, customers, family, and friends. Register today!

For any questions about the Step It Up Challenge, please contact Noelle Reinhart at [email protected]. 

About Health Action Council
Health Action Council is a not-for-profit 501(c)(6) organization representing mid and large-size employers that enhances human and economic health through thought leadership, innovative services, and collaboration. It provides value to its members by facilitating projects that improve the quality and moderate the cost of healthcare purchased by its members for their employees, dependents, and retirees. Health Action Council also collaborates with key stakeholders - health plans, physicians, hospitals, and the pharmaceutical industry - to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare in the community.