United Way event promotes activity

ESSEX COUNTY – United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County wants the community to get up, get moving and challenge themselves to be physically active as part of the second annual virtual fundraiser, called iMove for United Way, focused on supporting youth mental health.

Registration opened Monday, January 24.

The pandemic has been particularly hard on young people, with children reporting some of the largest declines in mental health compared to other populations.

iMove for United Way is a virtual fundraising event that focuses on the importance of physical activity and mental health, inviting people to set achievable fitness goals, like moving for 200 minutes or more.

The event team hopes that while being active and collecting pledges

to support local mental health and wellness programming for children and youth across Windsor-Essex, participants will experience improvement in their own mental health as well.

This event is for everyone. Whether you run, walk your dog, practice your yoga moves or dance in your living room, the goal is to get moving for mental health. Activities can be done solo or with family or friends in your ‘bubble’, with pandemic protocols in mind.

Physical activity, whether indoors or outdoors, is still encouraged, even under current COVID-19 restrictions.

iMove for United Way participants can connect through a virtual platform that can be used for fitness tracking and fundraising. Follow thehashtag #iMove4UnitedWay to see who is involved.

Registration is open at www.weareunited.com/ imove. To participate, make a minimum donation – $25 for adults, $5 for elementary and high school students, $10 for post-secondary students. Everyone is encouraged to fundraise more than the minimum and reach out and challenge others once they’re registered. Event pledges will be collected until March 6, 2022.

The goal is to raise $40,000 to support local mental health programs and services. Mental health supports are delivered through United Way’s On Track to Success, mentoring and outof-school programs, and family counselling programs delivered through Family Services Windsor-Essex.

iMove’s promotional video can be found on YouTube: https://youtu. be/CIY1-p9Xym8.