Announcing our February "Pound-for-Pound" Food Drive

One of our members has lost approximately one hundred pounds! She's planning to celebrate by having a neighborhood party where guests bring food donations - the goal being to collect one hundred pounds of food for the food bank.

What a wonderful way to celebrate! Not only did our Superstar lose her weight, but she's passing that benefit on to her community.

We thought the idea was so great, we decided to launch our own project: the February "Pound-for-Pound" Food Drive! Our goal is to collect 600 cans of food in honor of the 600 pounds of weight lost by our Program Participants.

We'll invite our other patients to participate also - and we'll sweeten the pot with a few Gift Card drawings just to keep it interesting.

What a special group of people we have! We realize that any weight loss program is challenging, but we are delighted by our progress. Lives are changing at Queen Anne Medical Weight Loss! And this group is sharing its victories with our larger community.

After all, we're all in this together!

Linda Gromko, MD

Clothing Give-and-Take

As we are shrinking, we are emptying our closets of our old standby garments - and making room for new, smaller things.

We've invited our members to bring their old, but well-loved items to our Clothing Give-and-Take Bin. As other members shrink into new, smaller sizes, they're welcome to help themselves.

After about a month, if unclaimed by our OPTIFAST Group members, these items will be given to the ICU Family Liason Office at Harborview Medical Center. In the midst of crises, families come with their loved ones to stay at the bedside for weeks on end. Many arrive in pajamas in the chaos of trauma.

These family members often need clothing - jeans, sweaters, etc. - as they often arrive with no personal items at all!

What a pleasure it is to know that our "cast-offs" can help not only our members, but families in crisis. The Director mentioned that clothing in "S-M-L" sizes are easier to come by than larger sizes, so our donations can be of great benefit.

We're all in this together,
Linda Gromko, MD

New Year Brings New Group Schedule

I guess it's predictable. The holidays have passed, and it's time to get serious about fitness and weight management. The health clubs are full, with new members making good on their New Year's resolutions.

And for many people struggling with weight management, New Year's is the time to start - or start again.

To that end, our membership is up, and we now have instituted two Group Sessions per week. You may come to one or both. The curriculum content will be repeated. But with any group, the same content can change dramatically given the dynamics of the specific grorup.

Group times are as follows:

           Mondays 12 noon - l pm
           Wednesdays 5:15 pm - 6:15 pm

Groups are held in the Second Floor Conference Room at 200 W. Mercer, just upstairs from our office at Queen Anne Medical Weight Loss.

So welcome. If you haven't tried the Groups, give them a try. We know that weight loss is maximal in folks who attend Groups regularly.

We promise never to "call you out." You can particiate as vocally or as quietly as you wish.

Plus, you might learn even one small thing that makes a difference in your own Program, in your own life.

See you in Group!

We're all in this together.
Linda Gromko, MD