Kennesaw Council Member to Visit White House

Kennesaw City Council member Dr. Cris Eaton-Welsh has been invited to the White House on Wednesday, July 10, for a celebration of cities recognized by the National League of Cities’ Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) campaign which will include a visit with First Lady Michelle Obama.  

LMCTC is a major component of the First Lady’s comprehensive Let’s Move! initiative, which is dedicated to solving the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation.  

The Fit City Kennesaw initiative, which launched in 2010, provided the framework for encouraging community residents to become more active. 

Under  Eaton-Welsh's leadership, Kennesaw was able to achieve significant milestones in improving physical activity and healthy eating and was awarded nine medals for best practices in meeting health and wellness goals. 

Kennesaw placed eighth in the nation using the National League of Cities (NLC) guidelines. “The success of the Fit City program can be attributed to a complete team effort involving city leaders, staff, and key community partners,”  Eaton-Welsh said.

Eaton-Welsh has been active in encouraging other municipalities to adopt similar programs, including participation in a NLC webinar and a speaking engagement at the annual Georgia Municipal Conference in June. 

Her role in championing citizen wellness programs led to the invitation to meet the First Lady. Prior to the White House reception, she will join 20 other civic leaders at a group meeting with Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius to discuss implementation, collaboration and improvements to Let’s Move!