About Us
Our vision is to educate people, especially children, about the importance of prevention and health promotion, with the hope of inspiring them to make healthy choices that will improve their quality of life.
Our Mission is to deliver a program to children ages 5-9 that teaches them about germs and healthy habits, and that motivates them to live as healthy a life as possible.
Heidi Meadows
Author
Heidi Meadows is a registered nurse who worked primarily in critical care for 28 years. After leaving hospital nursing due to multiple back injuries, she began to focus on prevention. She spent the next eight years volunteering in the community as a youth advocate and won a citywide award for her efforts. Expanding on this new focus, Heidi revisited a children’s story she had written for a health teaching project many years before, back when she was a student at the Boston College’s Connell School of Nursing. After meeting up with Emma Shull in 2019, the two of them worked together to complete What are germs? The book was accepted into publication by Orange Hat Publishing and is now a part of their growing book series, called The Adventures of George the germ.
Emma Shull
Illustrator
Emma Shull is a self-taught artist, illustrator, and animator from Seattle, Washington. She began drawing at a young age and quickly fell in love with the creative expression and limitless possibilities that art has to offer. She joined a prestigious art university in 2019 and graduated in 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts. She is now pursuing a master’s degree in fine arts, which she began in September 2024. Emma hopes her art will bring joy and inspiration to people all over the world and will create a lasting place for herself in the art community.
Our Growing List of Contributors
Community Health Care & Safety Professionals Sharing Their Expertise
A Special Thanks
In addition to the health care professionals who contributed their expertise to the Healthy Habits Program, we have been fortunate to receive help from people knowledgeable in the business side of the campaign.
Pediatricians
One step in developing the Healthy Habits Program was consulting with some of the local pediatricians in Appleton, Wisconsin. They were given a questionnaire on the topic of healthy habits and disease prevention, and their responses were compiled into a list that is shared at the end of the presentation. Thank you to all the doctors who contributed their knowledge and skills to this project.
Physical Therapists
While receiving treatment for some knee issues, Heidi had the pleasure of working with two physical therapists, Laura Johnson and Cortany Schearer. During her treatment sessions, Heidi was also able to consult with them on the topic of injury prevention for children. Thanks to their input, our program includes information for active children focusing on the importance of body mechanics .
Dentists
Tooth brushing and proper oral care is one of the most important aspects of health and self-care for children. In order to include this information in our program, we were fortunate to work with Elite Smiles Dental, and specifically with Dr. Rachel Breining in Little Chute. Our program includes valuable tips on oral care from Dr. Rachel, which will help children keep their teeth healthy for years to come.
School Nurses
Nurses are the main conduit to bringing a campaign such as this one to the children in our community. We are very thankful for the nurses who have connected us with teachers and helped us bring our program into their respective schools. We are also grateful to have these professionals contributing their first-hand experience and knowledge to our program.
BizSquad
A multidisciplinary team of instructor-nominated students through Fox Valley Technical College
Run by the Fox Valley Technical College, BizSquad is a team of select students from a variety of business-related programs. Working under the guidance of experienced faculty advisers, these students give back to the Appleton community by providing free support to local projects. Our team consisted of two instructors, Mitch and Matt, as well as four students, Aubrey, Kate, Danielle and Cassie, who helped us build the foundation for our website. We are so thankful not only for the hours of continuous help and expertise they provided, but also for the genuine kindness and positivity we received throughout our time working together. They helped us make our dream a reality.
To help this campaign become as impactful as possible, Heidi joined SCORE and was connected with a professional business volunteer. SCORE is a nonprofit organization that aims to “foster vibrant small business communities through mentoring and education.” We were matched with William “Bill” Devine, and we have had the honor of his time and expertise since 2021 . His advice has been invaluable, and we are blessed to continue to work with him as the program expands.
Bill Devine
Score Mentor