Unique Christmas Gifts

Unique Christmas Gifts

Published June 20, 2007[ From Lansing State Journal ]
Schneider: Unusual Christmas gift gets doctor's staff on losing track

Don't take this the wrong way, but how about if I buy you a membership in Weight Watchers for Christmas ... ?
That's the kind of proposal that could get you a black eye, instead of a thank you.
But Dr. Gerald Gilroy, an ear, nose, throat and allergy guy with an office in East Lansing, didn't just pull the idea from his ear. He and his wife, Jay Gilroy, who also happens to be the doctor's office manager, had long heard their staff grumbling about how difficult it was for them to shed pounds and how they needed the right incentive.

So, for Christmas, the Gilroys enrolled the whole bunch in Weight Watchers and paid the $130-per-head membership fees.
The result: 430 fewer pounds and significant general improvement in the collective health of the office.
Eight takers in office
Eight employees took the Gilroys up on their offer (the others, including the doctor, are slim enough).
To get Weight Watchers to come to them, they needed 14 participants. So they recruited six more people from among their friends.
For six months now, a Weight Watchers representative has come to the office once a week. The eight dieters who work there don't have to go anywhere to get the motivation they need. That, according to nurse Katherine Broker, one of the eight, has made all the difference in the world.
"She spends about 45 minutes here," said Broker, who has lost about 20 pounds. "She gives us pep talks and shares tips on what to eat and how to survive in the real world."
Following that advice, the crew ditched the pop that was once a constant presence in the office refrigerator. They also instructed grateful patients who traditionally baked cookies for the staff to bring fruit instead. They're exercising more, too.
One of the eight has weaned herself off cholesterol medicine, and another has lowered her blood sugar.
"And we all have more energy," Broker said.
Everybody's desire
Jay Gilroy, who is both the giver of the gift and one of the eight recipients, said the inspiration came out of desire to give something everybody wants and nobody has too much of: good health.
For Christmas 2005, she and her husband gave the staff gym memberships, but only a few of the employees took advantage of them.
The Christmas 2006 gift is a much bigger hit.
Gilroy said she and her husband received an unexpected gift themselves - a happier, more confident, more productive staff.
As for the staff, well, a gift certificate or cash bonus would have been gone long ago. But the Weight Watchers membership ... well, it just keeps taking away.
"This was an awesome gift," Broker said. "They gave us health."
What do you think? Call John Schneider at 377-1175, send a fax to 377-1298 or e-mail jschneid@lsj.com.
Include your name, phone number, city, town or township.
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