Ross Johnson, December Health Hero

I would like to nominate Ross Johnson, Vehicle Maintenance Mechanic of 30 years for Metro Transit as a health hero.

Ross just turned 60 this year and keeping fit comes easy for him.  He has never been a user of any tobacco products, keeps physically active, eats a healthy diet, always making sure the appropriate servings of fruits and vegetables are included in his daily food plan, wears a pedometer and generally gets over 10,000 steps a day.

While Ross has not done anything dramatic like loose weight or quit smoking, he has from a young age made the lifestyle choices that eventually became routine to him to maintain good health and well being.  I have just finished partnering with Ross on the Live Well Challenge and have been impressed with his daily activity of gardening, maintaining his home in Bellevue, balancing work, family and pleasure, which are the signs of a healthy lifestyle.  Ross is committed to his job at Metro, has the yard in his neighborhood that everyone stops to admire and is known as a calm person that is liked by everyone.  Ross was also nominated by his peers as the Transit Vehicle Maintenance employee of the year in 2001.

It should be noted that in 30 years and 7 months of employment at Metro, Ross has only used 3 days of sick leave, which is no small feat.  In spite of his physical work day of keeping the buses on the road, Ross has never had a workers' comp claim.  This record means that Ross follows the safety guidelines, being careful to use the correct techniques for lifting etc.  Ross is also very safety minded, always using a helmet and proper clothing when riding his Harley Davidson, always wears a seat belt when driving and never exceeds the speed limit.

Ross also follows the guidelines of preventive care, having physicals and requisite tests that will maintain his well being.  He takes the correct supplements, such as a multi vitamin, glucosamine chondroitin, calcium, Vitamins, C, D and E etc.  Ross also takes generic drugs when he does have a prescription.  Ross epitomizes the values we all should follow when young in order to enter into our later years as active healthy seniors.  Ross’s lifestyle choices makes it easier for him to sustain his good health and well being and will enable him to enjoy his retirement in the coming years as a vital, strong, healthy and happy man.

I believe Ross is a health hero because he has taken all the steps in his life to live a healthy lifestyle and he is now reaping the rewards of that healthy lifestyle by not having to deal with diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and all the other maladies that many seniors face as they age.  He is cognizant of the cost of health care and does everything he can to use the health plan wisely and cost effectively.  His choices that lead to good health certainly helps him enjoy his life fully and still do the things he did as a young man.  His good health is also a benefit for the county because his choices help to keep the cost of health care down.

Cindy Lee, Manager of Benefits, Payroll and Retirement