Well Workplace Awards Celebration Dinner

The newest additions to the list of America's Healthiest Companies were recognized at WLCME's Well Workplace Awards Celebration Dinner on May 19 at the Spectacular Events Center in Bangor. This year's celebration featured Peter Vigue, President/CEO of Cianbro as the Keynote Speaker. Mr. Vigue believes that his people are his greatest asset and investing in their health and quality of life is an investment in the company itself. His keynote speech was aptly titled, "It's All About People."

Our awards program recognizes organizations that have built successful results-oriented wellness programs, as defined by WELCOA's seven benchmarks. Four companies were honored this year. The Gold awards were presented to Brewer Automotive Components (BAC) and Millinocket Regional Hospital. The pinnacle of award levels, Platinum, was presented to Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maine and Cianbro. Nationally, only fourteen companies currently hold the Platinum designation and two of those programs are in Maine! The four companies receiving awards this year have a lot to be proud of. They have clearly demonstrated innovation, leadership, and success in the realm of workplace health promotion. This is more than just an award – it is proof that these companies have established a results-oriented worksite wellness program -- successfully aligning company needs and business strategy with the interests and desired health outcomes of their employees.

Amanda Martin, BAC's Wellness Program Coordination, summed up the success of their program by stating, "Participants felt the program was motivating and brought positive changes to their lives."

Award winner, Marie Vienneau, CEO of Millinocket Regional Hospital said, "We're extremely proud to receive the gold award on our first application. It was a rewarding experience to be involved in the program."

The WELCOA model has helped thousands of companies transform their corporate cultures and improve the health and well-being of their most valuable asset – their employees. In one of the follow-up questionnaires completed by Anthem’s President and General Manager, those thoughts about the program’s success were echoed, stating that his involvement in the WELCOA plan, "demonstrates the commitment that we have made to improve our health as well as the communities that we live and work in."

Congratulations to this year's winners! You are setting the standard high for other employers in Maine!

Wellness Council of Maine Honors Leaders

The Irv Marsters Wellness Champion Leadership Award recognizes two award levels; one for an individual and one for an organization or business that promotes or demonstrates leadership qualities in health promotion and wellness. The Purpose of the Irv Marsters Wellness Champion Leadership Awards is to elevate awareness of the benefits of health promotion and wellness in the business community and population at large, recognize Wellness Council leaders who have used their skills, knowledge and resources to benefit humankind, and serve as an example for others to follow in advancing wellness in Maine.

The Individual Wellness Champion Leadership Award identifies an individual leader who has been instrumental in making their organization’s wellness program a top strategic priority and has provided encouragement, time, and resources for a healthy work environment for all employees. Recipients may also serve as role models due to their ongoing participation and commitment to the employee wellness program. Dan Dauphinee, Operations Manager at Northeastern Log Homes was chosen as this year’s honoree.

The Irv Marsters Business Award recognizes an organization or business that has made significant investment in promoting health and wellness within their company. The organization should also demonstrate support for Wellness Council of Maine’s mission to advance and promote good health among employees statewide so that the business community can maintain productive workforces to help them thrive and prosper. Occupational Medical Consulting, LLC, received this award. Dr. Larry Catlett, founder and President of Occupational Medical Consulting, accepted the honor on behalf of his entire team at OMC.

Well Workplace University

Twenty three participants from sixteen organizations attended the Wellness Council of Maine's Well Workplace University, "Building and Sustaining a Results-Oriented Employee Wellness Program" on April 28th, 2009 at the G. Clifton Eames Learning Center in Bangor.

Faculty included Jaime Laliberte, Director, Wellness Council of Maine; Robert Carmichael, SVP HR and Training, Maine Savings Federal Credit Union; and Paul Hammond, Exercise Physiologist, St. Joseph Healthcare. Well Workplace University is an internationally recognized learning opportunity where business leaders, health care professionals, and wellness practitioners come together to learn the art and science of building world-class worksite wellness programs. Because Well Workplace University is designed to equip participants with both the "theory behind the thinking" as well as the important "how to's," participants walk away from this training with the knowledge and skills needed to confidently design and deliver worksite wellness programs that do what they're supposed to do – produce results.