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Winner of the Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund - June 3, 2008
Carol Fiscus Honored with $5,000 Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund Award
June 3, 2008

Noxon, Montana Resident Wins Cash Award To Provide Health Resources To Elderly In Rural Community Through "Fit Seniors"


(New York, NY, June 3, 2008) Noxon, Montana, resident Carol Fiscus, 52, is one step closer to driving meaningful change in her community and creating a better tomorrow. Carol was named this week’s winner of the Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund, a weekly $5,000 cash award program from Avon Products, Inc. to support individuals in their work to empower women. In addition to her volunteer work, Carol is also an Avon Sales Representative, and is the third Avon Rep to date to win an Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund award. She is also the second Hello Tomorrow Fund winner in Montana and is among the first to be selected by a newly expanded panel of judges that includes Sarah Ferguson, The Duchess of York, and actress Phylicia Rashad. Carol will use her award to create “Fit Seniors,” a program to provide senior citizens with basic health resources such as access to exercise equipment, nutrition education and group support to improve their mental and physical well-being.

Like most towns in remote Northwestern Montana, Noxon is an extremely rural community without many of the resources available in more populated areas. The 300 residents must travel at least 40 miles to the nearest grocery store and an hour to reach restaurants, health centers or hospitals. Heavy winter snowstorms often prevent travel and even walking for nearly six months of the year. For more than 100 women in the small towns of Noxon and nearby Trout Creek and Heron, access to preventative health measures is nearly non-existent. Half of the women in these communities live near or below the poverty level, and obesity is epidemic. While many seniors nationwide tend to lead inactive and isolated lives, the extreme rural conditions in this community compound an already debilitating problem.

As a former Juvenile Probation Officer, Carol has spent many years empowering girls to set goals and make positive life choices to fulfill their dreams. Through her community involvement Carol has developed relationships with many community leaders, and as a result, the local firehouse, which doubles as the senior center, has offered its space for “Fit Seniors” to meet. Carol currently volunteers her time to teach self-improvement and computer literacy classes for seniors, but she has become aware of the intense need for physical fitness and health education.

“I have seen firsthand how isolating life can get for many women,” Carol says. “As an Avon Representative, I have customers who order 99-cent deodorant just so I will visit. I thought this would be a cool way to help them.”

Realizing that outdoor activities are often not possible, Carol will use her Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund award to purchase a Nintendo Wii gaming console and a big screen TV for seniors to use exercise videos and play physical video games, such as bowling and tennis. Carol will also secure a trained yoga instructor who specializes in arthritis and geriatrics. The year-round self-supporting program will facilitate basic exercise and nutrition education to promote healthier living for all seniors living in the area. Thanks to the Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund, Carol will also be able to promote physical, emotional and mental well-being for an often neglected group in her community.

Carol’s winning application to the Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund met the criteria of clearly presenting unique and achievable objectives to empower women or girls and ultimately improve society. It was selected from a pool of strong contenders by an expert panel of judges, including personal finance expert, Suze Orman, actress Phylicia Rashad and Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York.

“This is a powerful great reminder of the isolation, poverty and scant social services available in our rural communities,” noted judge Anne Dowling of Carol’s proposal. “It is a noble effort to help women overcome despair, improve their health and come together to create support networks.”

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