NEWS RELEASE

News Bureau • Schofield Hall 201 • Eau Claire, WI 54702
phone: (715) 836-4741
fax: (715) 836-2900

UW-Eau Claire Plans Activities for
Eating Disorders Awareness Week 

MAILED: Feb. 8, 2002

         EAU CLAIRE — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire is offering several activities for the week of Feb.18-22, which it has designated Eating Disorders Awareness Week. The theme of the week is "Every Body is Beautiful."
         Peer Health Educators and Peer Diversity Educators will cover one mirror in the bathrooms of each residence hall on Monday, Feb. 18, in an effort to make it "A Day Without Mirrors," recognizing that the image we see in the mirror does not accurately represent who we are. Also on Feb. 18, at 7 p.m. in Davies Theatre, Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship is holding a program titled, "Eating Disorders and God - Finding Hope in Hopeless Situations."
         At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, Kitty Westin, founder and president of the Anna Westin Foundation, will give a presentation in Davies Theatre titled "Consumed by Anorexia: Anna's Story." Anna Westin was a Chaska, Minn., high school graduate and University of Oregon student who died in February 2000 as a direct result of anorexia. Her mother Kitty and the rest of the Westin family established the Anna Westin Foundation to help those suffering directly or indirectly from eating disorders.
         Mary Farrell, RN,C will lead a discussion titled "Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Image" at noon on Wednesday, Feb. 20, in the Alumni Room of Davies Center The discussion is part of the Women on Wednesdays series, and will address elements of a healthy lifestyle and how they impact one's self-image. At 9 p.m., “Shatter the Mirror,” the next workshop in the “How the Well are You?” wellness series sponsored by the Peer Health Educators, will be held in Sutherland Hall. Participants will learn the signs and symptoms of eating disorders, as well as how to help a friend who may be struggling with an eating disorder.
         On Feb. 21, the Peer Diversity Educators will present “Beyond ‘Killing Us Softly’: Images of Women in The Media” at 7 p.m. in the Towers TV Lounge.
         National Residence Hall Honorary will sponsor the "Great Jeans Giveaway," a clothing drive to collect clothes that no longer fit, which will run throughout the week. In addition, an information booth will be located in Davies Center Feb. 18-21.
         Sponsors of the weeks events include Student Health Service, Peer Health Educators, Housing and Residence Life, Peer Diversity Educators, Women's Studies Program, Wisconsin Women in Higher Education Leadership, the UW-Eau Claire Commission on the Status of Women, Women in Higher Education-Eau Claire, Vice Chancellor and Provost Ron Satz and the Office of Academic Affairs.
         For more information contact Sarah Harvieux, health educator, at (715) 836-2001 or harviesm@uwec.edu.
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News Bureau
Judy Berthiaume
UW-Eau Claire News Bureau
Schofield 201
(715) 836-4741
newsbur@uwec.edu

Updated: Feb. 8, 2002