Aug 13, 2009 5:53 pm US/Central
Elgin Declared Fattest City In Illinois
But Distinction Sparks Little Interest In 'Fitness Grants'
ELGIN, lll. (CBS) ―
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Fat isn't funny if your town's been tabbed as the most overweight in the state.
It's a health crisis, and Elgin's institutions are joining together to encourage residents of the town to tighten their belts.
In Elgin, civic leaders face a weighty problem: a survey that calls their town the fattest in Illinois.
Some can't believe it. But the figures, pulled from driver's license data, don't lie -- except, that is, when drivers lie about their figure.
"We all know that people under-report their weights often on their driver's license, so it might even be scarier than we had initially thought," Melissa Serritella of Activate Elgin said.
Elgin Mayor Ed Shock said he doesn't believe his community is the fattest city in Illinois. But he does believe Elgin shares in an obesity epidemic that, shall we say, stretches nationwide.
"It's a function of kids not exercising as much," Shock said. "Very few kids walk to school anymore. Most kids don't ride their bicycles."
And data from Elgin's school district shows almost half the kids are obese or at risk of obesity.
Whatever the scope of the problem, the Elgin YMCA offered a solution $48,000 in Kane County-funded grants to promote healthy living. Except one thing: no has signed up for the money yet.
"It just re-enforces the lack of commitment to address this epidemic in our country, which is obesity," Rick Reigner, CEO of the Elgin YMCA, said.
At Elgin's riverfront park, we found plenty of big losers.
"I was 210 pounds at one time … (now) I'm 170," resident Pedro Perez said.
"Since the beginning of the year, I've lost probably about 50 pounds," Bob Wolf said.
And like Wolf, Elgin officials say, they deserve credit for recognizing that the heavyweight championship of Illinois cities is no prize.
"Whether or not Elgin is the fattest city in the state, I think something needs to be done," Serritella said.
The $48,000 for grass-roots health programs is being offered in $1,000 grants through a coalition called Activate Elgin. The deadline is Sept. 1.
More information on the fitness grants, including application forms, can be found at the Activate Elgin Web site.
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