Congratulations!
On 27 March 2014, 14 people, representing eight Greater Sydney Conference churches, graduated from the Adventist-designed, government-approved Certificate IV for their successful completion of the Presenting Community Health Educator’s Program (CHEP). The certificate course, conducted by Sibilla Johnson, Health Director for the Victorian Conference, is designed to qualify Seventh-day Adventist lay people to conduct church health programs for their local communities. Participants are taught public and lifestyle health, vegetarian cooking and food safety principles. Upon completing the course, they also receive a certificate in food safety.
A Strong Advocate for Health
Sibilla Johnson, a strong advocate for Adventist health ministry, developed this Certificate IV program and took the necessary steps to have it approved by the government. She has been a leading nutrition education expert in Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and Papua New Guinea. Sibilla shows a genuine zeal to propel people forward to make a difference in their community with the Adventist health principles.
The ten-month course includes four weekend blocks of class work, assignments, an audio/visual presentation on a health topic, the requirement to teach a vegetarian cooking class and to pass a two-hour exam.
Promising Future for CHEP
The future of CHEP is promising. CHEP is partnering with Avondale College to develop educational courses and certification for health educators. In this way, Sibilla’s zeal for health will continue to live on in the halls of academia and eventually in the communities that will be impacted by the program.
Launch of CHIP Program
The timing of the CHEP graduation coincides with the launching of a series of new Complete Health Improvement Programs (CHIP) throughout the Greater Sydney area. CHEP graduates are well qualified and enhance CHIP programs. The CHIP program is another health initiative of the Greater Sydney Conference that aims to empower people to take control of their health with a 30-day program that is scientifically proven to make significant improvements to Body Mass Index (BMI), cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
For more information about participating in future Presenting Community Health Educator’s Program (CHEP) or the upcoming Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP), contact Malcolm Rea, Health Director for the Greater Sydney Conference at malcolmrea@adventist.org.au.