Guthrie was one of 21 cities to be awarded a Healthy Communities Incentive Grant from the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET). On May 9, the Oklahoma TSET Board of the Directors approved a $8,000 grant for Guthrie to help continue projects that promote physical activity, wellness and overall community health.
City officials plan to use the money to provide bike racks in downtown Guthrie, as well as additional bike racks across the city. Funds will also be used to purchase a Share the Road stencil and paint to go on city streets. Last year, The City of Guthrie received a $5,000 grant to assist in the implementation of the Guthrie Community Garden. A special thanks go out to Get Fit Logan County and the Guthrie Transportation Authority for their hard work on this grant. Logan County, as a whole, is the 12th healthiest county in Oklahoma, but received an “F” letter grade when it came to physical activity.
“This award is a great step in making it easier for folks in Guthrie to live healthier lives. Having bike racks around town lets people know that this is a bicycle-friendly community, which is huge. 25% of all trips are made within a mile of the home, which means those trips have the potential to be bike trips, whether it’s to the grocery, post office, coffee shop, church, work, wherever. ” –Justin Fortney, Chairperson for the Guthrie Transportation Authority
The TSET Board awarded a total of $191,000 in grants to cities across the state. This is the second year of the incentive grant program which, combined with last year’s grants brings the total to $377,000 awarded by TSET. Communities certified by the Oklahoma Certified Healthy Communities program were eligible to apply for the grants.
Grants are awarded based on population and specific criteria met. All applicants were required to be certified through the Certified Healthy Community program, a partnership between the Oklahoma Academy for State Goals, the Oklahoma Turning Point Council, the State Chamber and the State Department of Health. The grants encourage communities to implement health and wellness-oriented policies and programs. The incentive grant criteria focus on tobacco and alcohol use prevention; nutrition and physical activity; built environments and transportation; health services and community education and policy changes and community health improvement.
“We are pleased so many Oklahoma cities are working to make their communities healthy places to live, play and work,” said Tracey Strader, TSET executive director. Guthrie is enacting policies that are making a difference in people’s lives. This grant highlights the achievements of Guthrie and its effort to make the healthy choice the easy choice.”
Other incentive grant recipients were Alva, Bartlesville, Blair, Blanchard, Bristow, Chandler, Collinsville, Elk City, Guymon, Lindsay, McAlester, Moore, Muskogee, Norman, Perkins, Prague, Sand Springs, Seminole, Tahlequah and Weatherford.
TSET was created by a constitutional amendment in 2000 as a long-term strategy to ensure settlement payments from a 1998 multi-state lawsuit against the tobacco industry are used to improve Oklahoma’s health status. The funds are placed in a endowment to ensure a growing funding source for future projects. Only the earnings from the endowment are used.
If you are interested in being part of Get Fit Logan County, please contact Courtney Thompson, Nutrition and Fitness Coordinator at 405-282-3485 or courtneyt@health.ok.gov
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