Healthy Bishop Day
Allison Smith ’15 and the Battling Bishop take part in this year’s Healthy Bishop Day. (Photo courtesy of Karson Stevenson ’16)
Annual Event Helps Students Become Well(ness) Aware of How to be Healthier
Ohio Wesleyan students learned how to live a healthier life during the 4th annual Healthy Bishop Day celebration.
The Feb. 12 event was sponsored by the Healthy Bishop Initiative (HBI) with Alexa Katrinchak ’15 serving as student director. The HBI was founded in 2010 to bring wellness awareness to Ohio Wesleyan.
The day kicked off with Daylin Stevens ’15 and other students from OWU’s Cooking Matters group preparing mango salsa in Hamilton-Williams Center while students from FitOWU provided free functional movement screenings to evaluate base rate movement capabilities and limitations.
“I am a member of Healthy Bishop Initiative as well as a member of PHAT (Peer Health Advocate Team),” Stevens said, “so I represented my clubs and was able to use my culinary skills that I’ve obtained from the Cooking Matters program … to share … the benefits of healthful fun eating.”
Healthy Bishop Day continued in Smith Dining Hall, where students were able to choose from several healthy meal choices for dinner and members of the Cooking Matters group prepared a healthy stir-fry.
And no OWU Healthy Bishop Day would be complete without the smoothie bike, which allows people to ride a stationary bike to power a blender and create a refreshing blended treat. The Battling Bishop himself made an appearance, showing his support for healthy living.
OWU students and one very stoic guest chef whipped up a tasty and nutritious dish during the 4th annual Healthy Bishop Day. (Photo by Jane Suttmeier ’15)
Several Ohio Wesleyan health- and fitness-focused clubs set up tables during the celebration with informational pieces about diet, exercise, and nutrition. These clubs included Veg Club, CLEAR (Choosing and Learning Environments with Alcohol Respect), PHAT, OWU Health Center, and several FitOWU/Health and Human Kinetics groups.
In addition, representatives from OhioHealth set up free skin cancer and biometrics screenings and took BMI measurements. These simple, fast exams allowed students to see their glucose, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels as well as to better understand how their weight and height corresponded with their health.
The 2015 Healthy Bishop Day was deemed a success by all involved. Allison Smith ’15, a member of PHAT, said the annual event is one of the most beneficial programs offered by the university to promote health on campus.
“It is always so fun, and I loved see the Cooking Matters students prepare some of the food,” Smith said. “Hopefully it will encourage other students to try and cook healthy meals, too.”