We are proud to profile these winners of our 2019 My City Wellness Awards.

The American Dream of sending our children to college is just as strong now as it was when we were growing up. Teaching our kids to “dream big” and “reach for the stars” has been ingrained in our culture to a point where a college undergraduate degree is almost as prevalent as the high school diploma of years past. While this isn’t a bad thing, it has emboldened educational institutions to increase tuition and fees at a very high and almost linear rate over the last 30 years. Valuepenguin.com has estimated that the average cost of tuition, fees, and room and board for a public (in-state) college is $20,770. The average all-in cost of a private school is $46,910. If you have a genius living under your roof – and chances are pretty high that you do since you’re smart enough to read this article and the proverbial apple won’t likely fall far from the tree – the cost of a year’s tuition at Harvard is around $78,200! Finaid.org has stated that average tuition costs are increasing at approximately 8% per year. This number is much higher than the recent inflationary numbers of the last decade.

“I want to tell you what this place is like,” says Justin, a program participant. “It’s like when you have spent your whole life in darkness – your whole life – and suddenly, a light is turned on. At first, it’s blinding, but after that, you can finally see. You can see everything clearly. Everything is finally bright and beautiful. That’s what this place has done for me.” Justin is one of 26 participants in the program at Adult & Teen Challenge – Flint Campus. Every participant has wrestled with drug, alcohol and other addiction for most of their lives. Many have lost everything. Some, like Justin, have found inspiration in their families and children to get help. Others have found theirs in the realization that a better life is possible and deserved. The Adult & Teen Challenge has provided all of them with friendship, responsibility, faith and hope including Flint Campus Director and former program graduate, Phil Hall. “It’s a beautiful thing to see the change in these guys from where they were to where they are now,” he says. “They are all whole, new people. It’s a really amazing place and a privilege to be here. It’s a place that changes lives forever.”

For many people, the thought of having surgery is terrifying. So, My City Wellness Publisher, Vince Lorraine has “scrubbed in” with talented local surgeons as they performed a variety of procedures – a peek behind the curtain, if you will. Our sincere thanks to Bharath Naravetla, MD, Ranjith Dodla, MD and the teams at The Surgery Center and McLaren Flint for their gracious cooperation in creating this ongoing special section.

Child safety extends to many different categories – car safety, safe sleep, household hazards – but one of the best ways to protect your children is through making sure they are up-to-date with all of their vaccinations. Though a hotbed topic, vaccines have statistically been proven to provide the best chance at preventing your child from contracting various diseases, such as measles, mumps, the flu and even cancer. Here are a few reasons why immunizations are an important tool in protecting the health of your child.

Hurley Medical Center is home to this region’s only Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Each year nearly 1,000 babies are born prematurely or critically ill, either at Hurley Medical Center or in the surrounding three-county area. For the best chance of survival, these fragile lives require the expert, highly-specialized critical care available only from Hurley Medical Center’s Level III NICU, the highest level of expertise, the most advanced technology and a dedicated and caring staff.