Weight
Watchers “Lose for Good” Campaign Encourages Members to Lose for Others
Local North Olmsted
Resident loses 150 pounds, donates 150 pounds of food to Cleveland Foodbank
100+ Weight Watchers Members and their
families set to “5K/10K Walk for Others” This Sunday, October 24 in Strongsville
to benefit Cleveland
Foodbank
CLEVELAND, Ohio --- For the past two years, Weight Watchers members
have shown that they can improve their health while helping those in need. In
September, the company launched its third annual Lose For Good campaign, an
initiative that fights hunger both locally and globally by increasing awareness
of this important issue and helping to provide access to healthy food for those
in need.
Locally,
Weight Watchers members throughout the Greater Cleveland area have been
participating in the Lose for Good Campaign in two ways: by losing weight and
through food drives.
During
the seven week campaign (September 5th through October 23rd),
for each pound of weight that members lose, Weight Watchers will donate up to
$1 million to two national hunger fighting organizations. The campaign has
allowed members to not only lose the weight for good to help their own health
efforts, but also to lose the weight to help others who are in need of food.
Weight
Watchers members have also been participating in food drives locally to benefit
the Cleveland Foodbank. Many members have donated food in the amount of weight
that they have lost. During last year’s campaign, over 6,000 pounds of food was
donated through local Weight Watchers meetings to the Cleveland Foodbank.
One
local North Olmsted
resident, Rose Perry, has lost more than 150 pounds through the Weight Watchers
program. In honor of her significant weight loss achievement, she will be
donating 150 pounds of food to the Cleveland Foodbank. Perry’s “Success Wall”
will be displayed at the Weight Watchers Center
in North Olmsted
beginning this Saturday, October 23 when she makes her final donation to
complete her total.
To
celebrate the conclusion of the Lose for Good campaign, local Weight Watchers members
will be using activity to support those less fortunate. This Sunday, October 24
at 2pm at Bonnie Park in Strongsville,
WW Leader Stephanie Mueller will host a “5K
& 10K Walk for Others” to benefit the Cleveland Foodbank. WW Members,
along with their family, friends and pets are encouraged to attend and support
the Lose for Good campaign. Participants are asked to bring a non-perishable
food item to be donated to the Cleveland Foodbank. Mueller hosted a 5K Walk in
June as part of Weight Watchers “Walk-It Challenge”. Over 100 people attended
the event, many of whom would never have considered taking the challenge of
completing a 5K without the encouragement from their fellow Weight Watchers
meeting members.
Media
representatives are welcome to attend the “5K/10K Walk for Others” this coming
Sunday. There will be a pre-walk/run warm-up beginning at 1:45pm. The walk/run
will begin at 2:00pm. Representatives from the Cleveland Foodbank will be on
hand to accept the donations from the event participants as part of the Lose
for Good campaign.
If
media would like to visit the Weight
Watchers North
Olmsted Center
to view Rose Perry’s “Success Wall”, they are encouraged to contact Stephanie
Mueller to schedule a day/time. Stephanie Mueller can be reached at
(440.879.8727 or stephanie@wwleader.com)
for details.
National
Lose for Good Campaign Details
Between
September 5th and October 23rd, as Weight Watchers members and Online
subscribers lose weight and participate in other activities, the company will
donate up to $1 million to two leading hunger fighting organizations–Share Our
Strength and Action Against Hunger. Through Lose For Good, Weight Watchers has
donated more than $2 million to its charitable partners, and its members have
donated over 3.5 million pounds of food to food banks nationwide.
"Almost
one in four children in America
faces hunger and will endure lifelong consequences as a result of having
limited access to nutritious foods," said Billy Shore,
Founder and Executive Director of Share Our Strength. "Weight Watchers is
an important ally in our fight to make sure no child in America grows
up hungry. We're thankful for their dedication to our mission and the generous
support they provide through the Lose For Good campaign."
"The
Lose For Good campaign provides important support for our work to end hunger
around the world," said Nan Dale, Executive Director of Action Against
Hunger's U.S.
headquarters. "As Americans strive to make healthier choices at home, this
campaign offers a novel way for participants to help themselves while also
helping save children suffering from life-threatening malnutrition."
Academy
Award-winning actress and Grammy Award-winning recording artist Jennifer Hudson
is joining the effort and will take part in media appearances, as well as star
in a national TV spot that encourages Americans to get healthy and give back.
In September, Hudson will visit a New York City school as
part of the campaign to help educate families on how to prepare healthy, low
cost meals, while spreading the message that increasing access to healthy food
is an important step in fighting both hunger and obesity.
"I
am so proud to be a part of Lose For Good which encourages people to get
healthy, something I've learned to do with the help of Weight Watchers, while
at the same time giving back to those in need," explained Hudson.
"There are kids in our own country and abroad who are growing up hungry,
and as a mom, this breaks my heart. That's why I'm so happy to be involved in
this campaign, where weight loss success can help others - it's a win for
everyone!"
"Obesity
and hunger have become two sides of the same coin in many economically depressed
areas, and I'm proud that through Lose For Good, Weight Watchers, its members
and its partners can have a positive impact reversing this troubling
situation," said David Kirchhoff, President and CEO Weight Watchers
International, Inc.
There
are many ways to get involved and spread the message of Lose For Good:
- Visit the Lose For Good website: www.weightwatchers.com/loseforgood
- Success Walls: Online subscribers and Community users will be encouraged to
build "Success Walls" constructed of collected food that
represent their weight loss. They can then donate the food on or
around October 23 (Donation Day) via an
official Weight Watchers Meetup at a food bank or food drive by visiting
www.meetup.com/weightwatchers.
- Lose For Good Tab on the Weight Watchers Facebook
page: Visit
www.facebook.com/weightwatchers for updated information and videos
- Action Tuesdays: On six Tuesdays during the campaign, Weight
Watchers eTools subscribers and Weight Watchers Online subscribers will be
invited to participate in specific tasks, and for each task, Weight
Watchers will donate $1 to Share Our Strength
and Action Against Hunger (up to $5,000 per
Tuesday as part of the larger corporate donation)
- Lose-A-Palooza: A one-day social media event taking place on September 14th that will help further spread the
Lose For Good message. Weight Watchers will donate $1 to Share Our Strength and Action Against Hunger
for every accepted mention or acknowledgment of "Lose For Good"
made on September 14th through blogs, Twitter,
Facebook and check-ins via foursquare (up to $60,000
as part of the larger corporate donation)
- Member Local Food Drives: Select Weight Watchers meeting locations will be
holding local food drives throughout the duration of the campaign where
members can donate food that will be given to local food banks
About Weight Watchers International,
Inc.
Weight
Watchers International, Inc. is the world's leading provider of weight
management services, operating globally through a network of Company-owned and
franchise operations. Weight Watchers holds almost 50,000 meetings each week
where members receive group support and learn about healthy eating patterns,
behavior modification and physical activity. WeightWatchers.com provides
innovative, subscription weight management products over the Internet and is
the leading Internet-based weight management provider in the world. In
addition, Weight Watchers offers a wide range of products, publications and
programs for those interested in weight loss and weight control.
Cleveland Foodbank
The
Cleveland Foodbank supplies a majority of the food used in local hot meal
sites, shelters, and food pantries. In addition, we provide food to child care
centers, group homes, and programs for the elderly. The Foodbank works closely
with other Northeast Ohio hunger relief
organizations, providing food and nonfood products to hunger centers
administered by the Hunger Network of Greater Cleveland, the Catholic Hunger
and Shelter Network, and the Salvation Army, among others.
About Share Our Strength
Share
Our Strength(R), a national nonprofit, is ending childhood hunger in America by
connecting children with the nutritious food they need to lead healthy, active
lives. Through its No Kid Hungry Campaign(TM)--a national effort to end
childhood hunger in America by 2015--Share Our Strength ensures children in
need are enrolled in effective federal nutrition programs, invests in community
organizations fighting hunger, teaches families how to cook healthy meals on a
budget, and builds public-private partnerships to end hunger, both nationally
and at the state level. Working closely with the culinary industry and relying
on the strength of its volunteers, Share Our Strength hosts innovative culinary
fundraising events and develops pioneering cause marketing campaigns that
support No Kid Hungry. Visit Strength.org to get involved in the No Kid Hungry
Campaign.
About Action Against Hunger
Action Against Hunger | ACF International is a global humanitarian organization committed to
ending world hunger. Recognized as a leader in the fight against malnutrition,
ACF works to save the lives of malnourished children while providing
communities with sustainable access to safe water and long-term solutions to
hunger. With 30 years of expertise in emergency situations of conflict, natural
disaster, and chronic food insecurity, ACF runs life-saving programs in some 40
countries benefiting 5 million people each year.
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