To assist local businesses and child care facilities provide proactive environments for better health,
nutrition and physical activity for their employees and children in their care, Knox County Health
Department has awarded 41 community mini-grants.

The grants are part of KCHD’s Comprehensive Approach to Reducing Diabetes (CARD) grant from the Tennessee Department of Health and encompass several programs aimed at stemming the diabetes epidemic in Knox County. Eleven
businesses accepted $1,500 grants to help defray start-up costs and equipment for developing and
implementing worksite wellness programs for their employees. Thirty child care facilities were
awarded $600 grants to help improve nutrition and physical activity for their charges. 

“With our challenging economic times, these mini-grants provide local businesses and child care
centers the much-needed resources to implement creative programs to encourage healthy eating and
more physical activity,” said Dr. Martha Buchanan, Knox County Health Department director. “These
programs have the potential to impact thousands of Knox County residents by reducing risk factors
that contribute to developing diabetes and other serious illnesses during a person’s lifetime.”

Below is a listing of grant recipients and brief descriptions of the planned projects. 

Mini-Grant recipients* Project Description

Boys & Girls Clubs of Tennessee Valley Zumba classes at all club sites, physical activity equipment
City of Knoxville Fitness equipment and quarterly nutrition classes
CUPA-HR Fitness DVDs and pedometers
Habitat for Humanity Fitness center with equipment
Kids at Play, Inc. Pedometer/weight loss challenge, fitness videos, Fun Time Gym
Bus Classes, veggie garden installation
Knoxville Christian School Vegetable garden installation; buy and plant trees
Knoxville Convention Center Fitness equipment and lunch-and-learn classes
Rock Tenn Healthy vending and healthy snacks policy
TeamHealth Nutrition education about USDA's MyPlate
UT Medical Center Healthy worksite challenge: nutrition and fitness
YWCA Fitness equipment, fitness challenge and wellness committee
Tate's Totz and Teens (two locations) Physical activity equipment

West End Academy Physical activity equipment
SHADES of Development (eight locations) Cooking activities; equipment for a circuit training and cardio
program, nutrition materials; yoga classes; provide healthy
snacks; implement aerobics classes and other physical activities;
family fit nights
My Sister’s House Child Development Center Will rebuild their playground as a “natural playscape” inspired by
local environment. A natural playscape includes: natural hills to
climb, logs to jump from, and natural beams to balance on; tree
house, sand/dirt/grave areas for digging and building in; outdoor
shelving area; garden area for veggies. Children will compost
paper towels, etc.  
Church Street United Methodist Church Cooking class for parents, to promote well-balanced, healthy and
affordable meals
Starting Point School Physical activity equipment
Knoxville Montessori School Vegetable garden and strawberry patch installation
Cedar Bluff Playschool Physical activity equipment
Tennova Child Development Center Nutrition education for children, physical activity equipment
Christus Victor ECD Physical activity equipment; fruit and vegetable samples
My Village Child Development Center Physical activity equipment; cooking classes
Arnstein Jewish Community Center
Preschool Four Family Fun Sundays for family education through active play days
Farragut Church of Christ Provide healthy snacks for children
Trinity Child Development Center Create an outdoor classroom- organic vegetable garden and
composting site; build bird houses
Fifth Avenue Child Care Physical activity equipment
Riverside Child Care Vegetable garden installation
Knoxville Center for Early Education Vegetable garden installation
Central Baptist Church- Bearden Physical activity equipment
West Emory Child Enrichment Center Vegetable garden installation
Abundant Love Childcare Vegetable garden installation
*List does not total 41 because some received multiple grants or grants for different locations within
the same business.

According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 17.9 million people
nationally diagnosed with diabetes and an estimated 5.7 million people who have the disease but are
undiagnosed.  If current trends continue, one out of three U.S. adults will have diabetes by 2050. In
Tennessee, the percentage of adults with diabetes almost doubled between 1996 and 2005, from 5 to
9.1 percent and Tennessee had the sixth highest percentage of diabetic adults compared to all other
states. In Knox County, diabetes was the seventh leading cause of premature death in 2005. In 2008,
9.5 percent of Knox County adults reported they have been diagnosed with diabetes. This estimate
does not include pre-diabetes or borderline diabetes. The estimate for 2002 was 7.1 percent and in
2005, it was 8.2 percent (Knox County Behavior Risk Factor Survey, 2002, 2005, 2008). 

Knox County Health Department’s initiatives through the CARD Program directly address reducing
diabetes rates and include programs such as the tri-yearly diabetes management class series;
community-wide walking programs; the Nutrition Education Activity Training (NEAT) after school
program; the mini-grants; a walking school bus pilot project and an Eat Play Live Conference planned
for March 2012.

To assist local businesses and child care facilities provide proactive environments for
better health, nutrition and physical activity for their employees and children in their
care, Knox County Health Department is offering more than 40 community mini-grants.

The grants are part of KCHD’s Comprehensive Approach to Reducing Diabetes (CARD)
grant from the Tennessee Department of Health and encompass several programs
aimed at stemming the diabetes epidemic in Knox County. There are 12 $1,500 grants
to help defray start-up costs and equipment for businesses interested in developing and
implementing worksite wellness programs for their employees. Thirty $600 grants are
set aside to help child care facilities improve nutrition and physical activity. 

“These mini-grants are designed to provide an opportunity for local businesses and
child care centers to implement creative programs to address the obesity epidemic,
which is a contributing factor to developing diabetes and other serious illnesses during a
person’s lifetime,” said Dr. Martha Buchanan, Knox County Health Department director.

Mini-grant applications are due by Nov. 15. More information and grant applications are
available at knoxcounty.org/health.  Below are brief descriptions for the two mini-grants
types:

Worksite Wellness Mini-Grants 

• Twelve (12) $1,500 grants are available to for-profit and non-profit businesses
with a Knox County address
• Funding is to be used to promote physical activity and healthy eating at the
worksite
• Grant recipients will be expected to present project to the East Tennessee
Wellness Roundtable on May 14.
• To learn more and request an application, contact Sarah Griswold at 215-5170 or
e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  
Child Care Mini-Grants 
• Thirty (30) $600 grants are available to Knox County family based or center
based child care facilities
• Funding is to be used to assist child care centers in developing and implementing
nutrition and physical activity related programming
• To learn more and request an application, contact Cheryl Hill at 215-5170 or
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Grants will be awarded no later than Dec. 1 and all applicants will be notified of their
status.
According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 17.9
million people nationally diagnosed with diabetes and an estimated 5.7 million people
who have the disease but are undiagnosed.  If current trends continue, one out of three
U.S. adults will have diabetes by 2050. In Tennessee, the percentage of adults with
diabetes almost doubled between 1996 and 2005, from 5 to 9.1 percent and Tennessee
had the sixth highest percentage of diabetic adults compared to all other states. In Knox
County, diabetes was the seventh leading cause of premature death in 2005. In 2008,
9.5 percent of Knox County adults reported they have been diagnosed with diabetes.
This estimate does not include pre-diabetes or borderline diabetes. The estimate for
2002 was 7.1 percent and in 2005, it was 8.2 percent (Knox County Behavior Risk
Factor Survey, 2002, 2005, 2008). 

Knox County Health Department’s initiatives through the CARD Program directly
address reducing diabetes rates and include programs such as the tri-yearly diabetes
management class series; community-wide walking programs; the Nutrition Education
Activity Training (NEAT) after school program; the mini-grants; a walking school bus
pilot project and an Eat Play Live Conference planned for March 2012.