Healthy Emory Wellness Champion promotes stair use with encouraging words and phrases

June 27, 2023

Women in stairwell with “take a break” lettering

Healthy Emory team members (l-r) Mary Catherine Tison, Danielle Lenane and Kathy Campbell placed encouraging words in the Midtown Office Tower stairwell to motivate people as they take the stairs.

Twice each year, Healthy Emory invites its Wellness Champions to apply for funding to help promote and encourage healthy lifestyles within their departments and across the Emory enterprise.

One Wellness Champion, Kathy Campbell, submitted a grant proposal that would encourage activity and spruce up an area usually considered drab: stairwells.

“As a Wellness Champion and certified health education specialist, my primary focus is on the physical aspect of wellness,” says Campbell, who works in the pulmonary medicine department of Emory University Hospital Midtown and has volunteered as a Wellness Champion for three years. “Many people use the stairs. Thus, the idea to place motivational words in the stairwells — and the project name Climb — were born.”

The grants are awarded to individuals who are Wellness Champions actively involved in activities and events, and who embody the mission and vision of Healthy Emory.  Proposals are blindly reviewed and scored based on four factors:

  • Relevance to Healthy Emory focus areas
  • Methodology and plan
  • Evaluation procedures
  • Explanation of requested funds

Once approved, funds are given to the Wellness Champion to kick off the planning and implementation of their project.

Campbell and others applied cling stickers throughout the Medical Office Tower stairwell, from the lobby level to the 19th floor. She hopes the motivational words and phrases — “Phenomenal job!”, “You are doing great,” “Take a break” and more — will inspire people to skip the elevator and take the stairs with a smile.

More importantly, Campbell hopes this passion project makes increasing physical activity simple and fun for her Emory University Hospital Midtown team members.

“I felt this would give individuals inspiration to continue to be physically active,” she says.

Emory staff who are inspired to get involved in their team’s well-being can learn more about becoming a Wellness Champion by emailing Healthy Emory or visiting the Wellness Champion webpage.

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