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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > March 18, 2010
Milwaukee wins Well City USA designation
Published March 18, 2010 - BizTimes Daily
The City of Milwaukee has achieved a Well City USA designation.
Mayor Tom Barrett and local business leaders announced the results of Well City Milwaukee’s three-year effort to achieve a Well City USA designation from the Wellness Councils of America (WELCOA) this morning at City Hall.
Milwaukee was one of the only three communities nationwide to initiate a Well City initiative in 2007 and is currently one of seven active Well City projects. The official Well City USA designation will enable the city to showcase itself as a healthy place to live and work and position the city as a leader in wellness with a commitment to improving the health and well-being of its workforce.
In addition to Barrett, speakers and attendees at the celebration included: Janet McMahon, executive director, Well City Milwaukee; Dick Tillmar, co-chair, Well City Milwaukee; Theresa Islo, director of operations, Wellness Council of Wisconsin; Julia Taylor, president, Greater Milwaukee Committee (GMC); Tim Sheehy, president, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC); and Bevan Baker, commissioner of health, City of Milwaukee.
The three-year designation effort was led by Well City Milwaukee, a workplace wellness coalition formed in conjunction with the City of Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee and the MMAC.
“The Well City USA designation shows us that Milwaukee is working in a positive direction towards promoting the health and well-being of individuals in the community,” McMahon said. “Well City Milwaukee fits with the image we want to project as a city – revitalized, vibrant, active and progressive.”
Several of the region’s largest employers are members of Milwaukee’s Well City initiative, including: Rockwell Automation Corp. Aurora Health Care, Children’s Hospital and Health System, Manpower Inc., Good Will Industries and Northwestern Mutual Insurance Co. Inc. The City of Milwaukee, the MMAC and the GMC also earned member employer recognition in the program.
Barrett said, “I knew when I was approached back in December of 2006 about this initiative that this was absolutely the direction I wanted our city to go towards. I want to extend a sincere thanks to the 51 employers and the more than 70,000 employees that helped us in our efforts to earn this recognition. As the CEO of the city, I recognize the importance of having a healthy workforce, and we are not done yet our next challenge is to get another 51 employers on board.”
Islo said, “The city of Milwaukee, the GMC and the MMAC had a vision of a healthier workforce. It soon became clear that Milwaukee would be a leader in this effort. Milwaukee now serves as a model for other cities.”
With the designation, Tillmar said Milwaukee is the largest Well City in the nation.
