FHN Focus

January 2, 2025

Next Week's Calendar
of Events:

January 2

Blood Pressure Screening
11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Great River Outreach, 926 Viaduct Rd, Savanna
Open to the public; no cost or registration required.

January 7

Prenatal Class (Session 1a)
5 - 7 p.m.
Stephenson County Health Department, 10 W Linden Street, Freeport
The FHN/Stephenson County Health Department series of prenatal classes is offered to all regardless of their number of weeks gestation, however, they do correlate a bit with how a pregnancy progresses. Mothers-to-be and spouses/support persons are encouraged to attend these free sessions together. In session 1, the Stephenson County Health Department staff will cover nutrition, alcohol/drug/tobacco use, comfort measures, intro to the doula program, and community resources. Register for all four classes online at fhn.org/ob or call 815-599-6221 for more information.

January 8

Blood Pressure Screening
12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
St. John’s Lutheran Church, 625 Country Lane, Lena
Open to the public; no cost or registration required.

Adult Diabetes Support Group
5 - 6 p.m.
FHN Memorial Hospital Conference Dining Room - Lower Level; 1045 W. Stephenson Street, Freeport
Participation is free for anyone in the general public who has diabetes, and no referral or registration is required. Meetings are facilitated by FHN Diabetes Educators. For more information, call 815-599-6253.

January 9

Blood Pressure Screening
11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Salvation Army, 106 W. Exchange Street, Freeport
Open to the public; no cost or registration required.

Prenatal Class (Session 1b)
1 - 3 p.m.
Stephenson County Health Department, 10 W Linden Street, Freeport
The FHN/Stephenson County Health Department series of prenatal classes is offered to all regardless of their number of weeks gestation, however, they do correlate a bit with how a pregnancy progresses. Mothers-to-be and spouses/support persons are encouraged to attend these free sessions together. In session 1, the Stephenson County Health Department staff will cover nutrition, alcohol/drug/tobacco use, comfort measures, intro to the doula program, and community resources. Register for all four classes online at fhn.org/ob or call 815-599-6221 for more information.

Mama Milk Circle Infant Support Group
4 p.m.
Freeport Public Library, 100 E. Douglas Street
Bring your baby and join area moms to share knowledge, build a support system, and gain up-to-date infant support information. This group is open to all moms and free to attend; visit fhn.org/breastfeedingtaskforce for more information.

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View past issues of the Focus

Welcome

Coming up in this week's issue of The Focus you'll find:

FHN’s Get Fit Program is Back – and FREE – for 2025
Share Your FHN Pride! Shop Online for Gear and Gifts
FHN Career Corner
Help Spread the News: We’re Here, For You!
Celebrating Diversity and Inclusion and Worldwide Health
Classified Ads

FHN’s Get Fit Program is Back – and FREE – for 2025

FHN’s popular wellness program is back to help participants work toward their best health. Get Fit 2025 is heavy on tips, videos, and recipes to help participants build a healthy lifestyle for years to come!

Get Fit 2025 is a FREE 12-week online program beginning and ending with in-person screenings – and participants can join as an individual or as part of a 4-person team.

From Jan. 19 through April 13, 2025, participants will receive special Get Fit 2025 newsletters with healthy lifestyle information including exercise tips and healthy recipes. They also can take advantage of special offers from local fitness partners and participate in fun contests, and of course, win great prizes!

Participants must attend both an initial and ending screening to be eligible for this year’s major prizes. Signup includes the chance to schedule an appointment for a kick-off screening from 3 – 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 14 and from 8 – 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 18 at FHN Family Healthcare Center – Burchard Hills in Freeport.

Signup for FHN’s Get Fit 2025 is open now at www.fhn.org/getfit.

Share Your FHN Pride! Shop Online for Gear and Gifts

Working at FHN means you help people for a living! Show your pride by wearing a logoed shirt, carrying an FHN water bottle, or using logoed golf balls, and share your pride by gifting a special FHN coffee mug, shirt and more.

Log in to the FHN Online Store to find a variety of clothing for men and women, ranging from business attire to workout gear to scrubs, all bearing the FHN logo. You’ll also find sports goods like workout towels and golf balls, fun drinkware and lots of other options for gifts – or for yourself!

“Hard goods” like drinkware and gift items will be delivered FREE via interoffice mail within 3 business days. Apparel and headwear items will be delivered within 10 – 15 business days and shipping charges do apply.

Bookmark the FHN Online Store and keep checking back – we add new items often!

FHN Career Corner

There are many career opportunities within FHN. If you or someone you know is interested in new challenges go to our Career page, displaying the latest open positions.

FHN Team Members
Friends and Family

Help Spread the News: We’re Here, For You!

We have a lot to be proud of at FHN, from our talented, dedicated staff to the many advanced capabilities we offer our patients. We’re working hard every day to be sure we provide excellent care to our patients.

Each week, look to the Focus for good news to share about FHN in the form of downloadable flyers you can print and post or hand out to patients who may be interested. Also look for links to our most recent radio interviews and past interviews to listen to and recommend to others. Don’t forget to Like us on Facebook! Please encourage patients, friends, and family to also take advantage of these FHN information resources. Thanks for your help in promoting FHN!

Have you heard the latest radio interviews? Catch up on our Radio Broadcasts page!

Celebrating Diversity and Inclusion and Worldwide Health

January is …
Thyroid Awareness Month
National Glaucoma Awareness Month
National Birth Defects Prevention Month
Cervical Health Awareness Month
Stalking Awareness Month
Radon Awareness Month
National Blood Donor Month

The Iroquois Midwinter Ceremony held each January and February, lasts for eight days and each day is dedicated to an event such as tobacco invocation. The days vary according to community.

January is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender History Month in the United Kingdom. It was initiated by Schools OUT in Britain in February 2005. This is an opportunity for all to learn more about the lives and achievements of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in Britain and Northern Ireland.

The people of Switzerland honor Duke Berchtold V on Berchtold’s Day, January 2. He is the founder of Bern, the capital of Switzerland. He promised to name the city after the first animal he killed on a hunt. The bear (bern in German) then provided the city’s name.

January 5 is celebrated as Guru Gobind Singh’s Birthday by people of the Sikh faith. He was the 10th and last living Guru of the Sikh faith. He founded the Khalsa brotherhood, where the initiated adopted the five “K”s: Kangha (wooden comb), Kara (steel bracelets), Kirpan (sword), Kaccha (pair of shorts), and Kesh (long hair).

Christians celebrate Three Kings Day on January 6. In South America, Latin America, and parts of Europe, the end of the Christmas season is a traditional time for gift giving.

January 6 is Epiphany in the Western Christian church. The day celebrates the journey of the three Wise Men to Bethlehem to offer gifts to the infant Jesus. In the Eastern church, it is associated with the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. Armenians celebrate Christmas on this day.

Coptic and Eastern Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7. On this day, some Eastern churches celebrate the birth of Jesus according to the Julian calendar, which is 13 days behind the Gregorian or Western calendar.

January 8 is Seijin No Hi in Japan. The day celebrates the coming of age of the youth of Japan who are 20 years old. They wear traditional clothes and visit the shrines where the family announce their adulthood to the spirits.

Classified Ads

The deadline to submit ads for each Focus is 10 a.m. the Thursday before publication. Please submit your classified ad information to Tammy Edler, and send your donation to the Foundation.