From left, DPH Holiday Survivor Challenge individual winners Patricia Bennie (first place), Kim Kilgour (first runner up), Hietza Santiago-Alvarado (third runner up) and Martina Rowe (second runner up).

As the wife of an officer in the U.S. Air Force, Associate, Bacteriology Unit Patricia Bennie is used to packing up and making new friends wherever she goes.

 

"I moved here about 10 years ago and although I was accustomed to starting over, it was always with other military individuals of whom the extension of welcome was the norm," said Bennie. "Concurrently, I was experiencing menopause and so my emotional eating began with no emotion off limits."

 

To put the brakes on the affects of menopause and the added pounds, Bennie became an avid tennis player in the Atlanta Lawn & Tennis Association (ALTA) and USTA, which afforded her the social outlet and friendships she so desired after moving from state to state. However, she still packed on 13 more pounds even though she was active.

 

"I did lose 11 pounds around two years ago, by attending Weight Watchers with a colleague," said Bennie. "We supported each other and we lost, only to gain it back again and a couple more."

 

In 2009, she joined the Georgia Department of Public Health and within the first 12 months, she had packed on another 12 pounds. Bennie attributed the weight gain to limited time to play ALTA or USTA matches and the demands of her new professional life

 

So in December 2012, Bennie joined DPH's Holiday Survivor Challenge to lose weight and develop healthier eating habits and regular exercise. Although a reluctant member at first, she cannot stop talking about all the benefits of the friendly competition and camaraderie.

 

"The support and encouragement that we gave each other made all the difference," said Bennie. "I joined hesitantly with the insistence of Harjinder Ghuman who wanted me to join her team [the Jewels]. The challenge allowed us to embark on a friendly competition, not only amongst those of us working at the laboratory but as a public health organization."

 

She admits that at the start of the challenge, she did things only because she made a promise to Ghuman and the other three team members that she would do her best. Bennie said she was not sure she could lose the weight because she believed the myth of weight gain with the blessing of more birthdays and menopause, and had not been able to accomplish this by herself.

 

"I was indebted to the team," Bennie said. "I set my alarm to exercise and only did because I owed it to my teammates on Jewels. I now wake up without an alarm and want to exercise. The success that we have achieved is wonderful. The challenge has provided team building and morale boosting amongst the participants. It has been beautiful to see each other change as we shed the pounds: smaller waistlines, narrower backs, wider smiles, no doubt increasing productivity. I personally have lost approximately 19 pounds. I started as a busting size 12, really size 14 but I wouldn't buy them, and I am now a perfect size 8."

 

On Jan. 24, DPH Commissioner Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald congratulated all of the challenge's team and individual winners. Bennie was recognized as the top individual winner with an 11.67 percent of weight loss. She lost a total of 19 pounds during the Challenge.

 

Bennie is so happy about the overall results of her team that she has joined Slim Down, the next DPH worksite wellness weight loss challenge.

 

"Thank you, Commissioner Fitzgerald for announcing the new DPH worksite wellness policy," said Bennie. "Thank you to Janie Brodnax for visiting GPHL during the holidays and encouraging our efforts. Thank you to Dr. Elizabeth Franko for approving our participation. Thank you, E. Susanne Koch for doing your job as the worksite wellness coordinator, and doing it so well. Thank you, Clairmont Survivors for all of your success, sharing and encouragement, as I celebrated your success I was able to attain my own. Last but not least, Thank you Michelle Kirk, for your unrelenting encouragement and support as a co-worker."

 

-Story by Connie F. Smith, DPH Communications