B.A.A. Interacts with The Road to Wellness 5K

B.A.A. Enhances Community Effort with The Road to
Wellness 5K

The Boston Athletic Association was founded with a mission
of promoting fitness through sport and its best known vehicle for doing so is
the Boston Marathon. It is probably safe to say that the race founders
could not have imagined the way in which the race would grow and become not
only a source of local pride, but an internationally renowned race. Some 128
years and 119 marathons later and the organization remains committed to its
founding mission, expanding the number of races offered and conducting the
B.A.A. Distance Medley, all of which are designed to engage people in the sport
and promote fitness.

 

This Fall, the B.A.A. takes a new approach and bring its
expertise and its commitment to fitness to a population that is traditionally
underrepresented in distance running, entering into a partnership with The
Dimock Center in Roxbury and HoodFit, a movement begun by Thaddeus Miles, the
Director of Public Safety for Mass Housing. The three are working together to
put on The Road to Wellness 5K, on September 12, 2015 in Roxbury.

 

The race was conceived as both a fundraiser and as an
opportunity to engage the Dimock population and surrounding communities in
physical activity. The Dimock Center has served as a community health center
for 151 years, from the same location just outside of Jackson Square and is
just a few t-stops away from the B.A.A. office. At Dimock, they know first-hand
the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle: heart disease, stroke, cancer,
obesity, diabetes and addiction‰ÛÓand the communities Dimock serves suffers
disproportionately from these diseases. In addition, Dimock is at the forefront
in addressing the opioid abuse epidemic. They have a comprehensive substance
abuse treatment model and care for clients from over 200 zip codes throughout
Massachusetts, and the need for their behavioral health services, sadly, is
growing.

 

Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan, President & CEO of The Dimock
Center and a former sprinter who attended Brown University, is determined to
change the health outcome for the community. As a physician, she found that she
was telling people what they needed to do to adopt a healthier lifestyle, but
now she is taking the next step of providing opportunities to engage the
patients in activities that will change their mindset and influence their
lifestyle. When she approached the B.A.A. for partnership, the B.A.A. agreed
her proposal fit its current outreach objectives. The B.A.A. is supporting The
Dimock Center by sharing expertise and guidance on race management and
logistics and assisting with training clinics.

 

The partnership is strengthened by the addition of HoodFit,
a community-driven, multi-generational movement that inspires people to boost
their individual fitness and to take collective action to amplify the positive
voices, attributes and assets of underserved urban communities. Miles, an
All-American athlete himself, has built HoodFit on the belief that within our
communities there are unsung assets, gifts and benefits that bring
strength.  HoodFit, revived the
Roxbury 5K in 2014 after more than three decades of dormancy and is now
combining forces with Dimock and the B.A.A. to broaden their collective reach
and amplify the gifts of the community.

 

The objectives for the run/walk are three-fold: to revive
what was once an annual tradition of a timed 5-kilometer race in Roxbury, to
bring the community together through an activity that will raise funds to
support the mission of the Dimock Center, and to empower members of the
community, particularly Roxbury, through engagement in health and fitness. The
course runs through historic Roxbury, passing by the African-American History
Museum and the Malcolm X House, and highlighting the beauty of the
neighborhood.  Both City of Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and B. A. A.
Executive Director Tom Grilk are expected to join Dr. Jordan and Miles at the
race. Registration is open and available online: http://www.roadtowellness5k.com/

 

Race day registration also will be in effect, beginning at
7:00 a.m. on race day. The 5K Run/Walk begins at 9:00 a.m. In addition, a
2-mile walk, a kids‰Ûª fun run, and health and wellness festival round out the
event. The race starts and finishes at the Dimock Center, located at 55 Dimock
Street in Roxbury.