Health Hero Challenge Finals

The Health Hero Challenge 2014 Finalists!

That’s right, folks. The Final Four are now up for voting in the 2014 Health Hero Challenge! You can cast a vote here.

If you’re new to the competition, here’s what’s been going on: Over the summer, we collected nominations from folks across the region, stories of people in our communities working hard to make Philly a happier, healthier place. From the more than 535 nominations, Philadelphia magazine editors narrowed the field to 16 semifinalists. During the month of October, we opened it up to reader voting over on our Facebook page; four semifinalists were up for voting each week, and the winner of each week went on to the finals.

Since then, we’ve been busy making videos of each of the finalists so you can get to know them better. We also wanted to find out which charity they are playing for in the final round, and why the charity is important to them. See, the winner of the Health Hero Challenge gets $3,000 for the charity of their choice, so this round of voting is all about giving back.

Without further ado, here’s who made it to the final round and their charity cause:

Allison Schwartz, founder of GFit Women
Charity: The Meadowbrook School
The mission of The Meadowbrook School is to offer an unwavering commitment to academic excellence for a diverse population of elementary school children. The school believes private elementary education includes learning to appreciate the value of hard work, expanding a sense of integrity, and practicing humanity towards others while inspiring students to make a positive difference.

W. Lonnie Herndon, pastor at Compassion Ministries
Charity: The Church of Christian Compassion
The Church of Christian Compassion supports its members spiritually as well as their physical well-being. Beyond spiritual services, they offer programs such as the F.I.T.T. Ministry that provides the congregation with a place to exercise and educate themselves on healthy living. The Church believes in taking a hands-on approach at bringing people together to live their lives to the fullest with the motto, “We are the Church in the heart of the community, with the community at heart.”

Pia Martin, health and physical education teacher at Science Leadership Academy
Charity: Science Leadership Academy’s Home & School Association
Science Leadership Academy’s Home and School Association is a parent-run organization with a mission to raise funds to help pay for SLA afterschool programs and academics. SLA’s Home and School pays for books for teachers, after school programs, sports teams’ equipment, trips, and 
facility improvements.

Colleen McCauley, health policy director for Public Citizens for Children and Youth
Charity: Public Citizens for Children and Youth
Public Citizens for Children and Youth works to improve the lives of our region’s children by developing initiatives and advocating for quality health care, child care, public education and family. PCCY combines comprehensive research and the tools of advocacy to mobilize partner organizations and citizens across the region to change the lives of children for the better.

Voting will remain open until noon on December 1st; you may vote once every 24 hours during the voting period. The winner will be announced live at our Health Hero Challenge party on December 3rd, and we’ll post the winner on our Facebook page and Twitter feed that night. Good luck to our finalists!

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