WESLACO — It’s time for It’s Time.
That’s right: A news conference was held Monday morning to help kick off the 2023 It’s Time Texas Community Challenge in the Rio Grande Valley.
The conference was hosted by the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council (LRGVDC) at their offices in Weslaco before a crowd of local leaders from its three represented counties: Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy.
“The community challenge is to find ways to be proactive for residents to keep up with their health, mental health and physical health, and be more active,” Manuel Cruz, LRGVDC executive director, said of the state-wide initiative.
It’s Time Texas is an Austin-based nonprofit that aims to promote healthier lifestyles throughout the state.
“What we’re trying to accomplish is trying to get the information of the list of resources out to the community so they can identify where those resources are and be more proactive when it comes to their health — whether it’s identifying the hike and bike trails that are out there, that’s one of the key components of living a healthier lifestyle,” Cruz said. “Go out there and be proactive and active to maintain your health.”
In the 11 years since the challenge was first introduced, over 40,000 Valley residents have participated. Organizers of that challenge hope that momentum from previous years will carry over to this year through high participation.
“As of kickoff today, we just surpassed 10,000 participants for this year’s challenge throughout the state,” Community Challenge Program Director Sam Gervase said. “We’re at just over 4,000 participants just here in the RGV. I would say, per community, (the Valley has) the strongest representation. Over the last 5 to 10 years, we’ve really invested in building relationships with our partners here in the RGV, which I think has shown that we’ve had more traction and engagement from those partners.”
Monday marked the first day of the eight-week competition, which will conclude on March 5. South Texas Regional Director Selene Guerrero said that January is the best time to start the competition since it coincides with the time of the year when people are making attempts to be healthier.
“Locally, the Valley has always shown up,” Guerrero said. “They come out in big numbers. I don’t know if we’re just more competitive. I don’t know what it is. There’s been more than 40,000 residents that have signed up since we’ve been tracking. It gets people excited. We hope that the momentum continues.”
The Valley was well-represented in last year’s challenge, with the city of McAllen earning first place in the large community category, the city of Pharr earning first place in the medium community category, and the city of Los Fresnos winning first place in the small community category.
Guerrero acknowledged that many residents in the area struggle with weight and diabetes, but she said that she hopes the community challenge will inspire healthier decisions.
“Yeah our food is great, but it’s about how we eat that food,” Guerrero said. “It’s managing that food, portion control, getting out there and walking. We do have great walking trails. We have a lot of running communities and cycling communities. It’s about bringing awareness that we do have those things here and we can get outside — granted, it is kind of hot. But in the evening, you can go out to a park.”
Anyone interested in participating in the community challenge can download the app and register there. The program also offers weekly prizes for healthy participants. More information can be found by visiting www.itstimetexas.org.
