About the Initiative
Body & Soul is a health initiative to encourage congregations to eat more fruits and vegetables. This program is based on solid research, which includes four pillars:

• Pillar I – Pastoral;
• Pillar II – Activities that promote healthy eating;
• Pillar III – A church environment that promotes healthy eating; and
• Pillar IV – Peer counseling that motivates church members to eat a healthy diet.

The University of Michigan (U of M) Comprehensive Cancer Center, Progressive National Baptist Churches, Ford Hospital – Your Journey to Wellness, and American Cancer Society (ACS), Flint Office, all came together to support this program in their respective areas.

ACS implemented all of the training, and U of M provided training for the peer counseling and physical activity components. Each collaborator recruited five or more churches to participate in the program and committed staff resources for follow-up and support for each of their churches to implement Body & Soul. This allowed for a much broader and more effective approach in building solid relationships with each church.

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Impetus for the Collaboration
Body & Soul was initially developed as a pilot program in collaboration with the ACS, U of M, University of North Carolina, and the National Cancer Institute. Its success as an evidenced-based program paved the way for Body & Soul to be implemented by partners across the nation.

Each of the collaborators had a specific interest in working with the African-American community and had churches that could implement the program.

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Results
Churches implementing Body & Soul are seeing marked interest in the health of their congregations.

All churches were trained by ACS with a consistent training module to ensure quality and clear understanding of the program. The churches are planning programs to educate the church members on health issues that most affect members of the African-American community. They are setting policy to establish a healthier church environment that will impact these churches for years to come.

U of M Cancer Center completed training with over 30 peer counselors, including five congregations in Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti and 11 in Detroit.

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Lessons Learned
The key to this program is the establishment of a health ministry or health committee within each church. When that group has support and training, the role of the partners is to give continued support. Every group brings specific expertise to the table and with a consistent training approach to ensure that all collaborators are sharing a consistent message, the program is able to have a positive impact on the churches.

Elements for success include: 1) establishing defined roles for each collaborative partner regarding church training and follow-up technical assistance, and 2) empowering churches to customize program activities and exchange best practices to maximize program effectiveness.

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Collaborating Partners

• University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Progressive National Baptist Churches
• Ford Hospital- Your Journey to Wellness
• Michigan Steps Up
• American Cancer Society (ACS) - Flint Office
• National Cancer Institute's Consumer Information Service
• American Cancer Society, Metro Detroit Service Center

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MCC Recognition
"Body & Soul: A Celebration of Healthy Eating & Living" received the Michigan Cancer Consortium’s 2006 Spirit of Collaboration Honorable Mention Award. The annual award is presented to member organizations that have done outstanding collaborative work to significantly move comprehensive cancer control activities forward in Michigan.

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Learn More
For more information about this project, please contact Voncile Brown-Miller of the American Cancer Society at 248-483-4399 (e-mail: vbrown-miller@cancer.org) or Natasha Blakeney Wilson, MPH, of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center at 734-647-5780 (e-mail: natashab@umich.edu).

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last updated: 07/19/07

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