About Walk Towards Health
A community rooted in legacy, grounded in science, and committed to the truth that the right lifestyle is medicine — available to every person willing to walk toward it.
Who We Are
Walk Towards Health is a state-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity founded on December 14, 2022, in Ashland, Virginia. We are dedicated to educating individuals and communities through demonstration and instruction on how lifestyle modifications can prevent, treat, and even reverse common chronic conditions.
Our work is built on the Six Pillars of Lifestyle Medicine — a framework backed by decades of rigorous scientific research and championed by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM). We do not offer quick fixes, gimmicks, or fad diets. We offer the truth, taught one person at a time.
Our goal is to transition local Virginia communities into Blue Zone living standards — the evidence-based lifestyle patterns found in the world’s longest-lived, healthiest populations.
Organization Details
- 501(c)(3) Public Charity
- EIN: 88-4395797
- Founded: December 14, 2022
- Location: Ashland, VA (full address disclosed after initial booking)
- Niche: Lifestyle Medicine Coaching, Consulting, and Education
Governance: Governed by a volunteer Board of Directors
Our Transformation Pathway
Our Founder
Wilhelmina Charlmain Johnson
MSN, RN, CFNIP — President & Founder
Wilhelmina holds a Master of Science in Nursing in Advanced Practice from The Johns Hopkins School of Nursing (2002), where she was awarded the Ruth Dale Ogilby Award for academic excellence. She brings 43 years of professional nursing experience across neuroscience critical care, emergency medicine, nursing administration, pediatric clinical directorship, research, and quality improvement consulting.
She served as an adjunct faculty member, is a published researcher, and is a certified nutritionist (CFNIP) holding multiple credentials in lifestyle medicine and wellness coaching, including 30 CME/CE credits through the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.
Wilhelmina currently serves as a Polytrauma Network Site Case Manager at the Central Virginia VA Health Care System, specializing in educating Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injuries and Stroke. She is a member of the Virginia National Organization for Veteran’s Affairs (VA NOVA).
Outside of her work, she enjoys tennis, cycling, ballroom dancing, and maintaining saltwater aquariums.
The Winston Legacy
Walk Towards Health sits on nine acres of land in Hanover County, Ashland, Virginia — the same land farmed by our founder’s grandfather, William Dabney Winston Sr. His legacy is so woven into the fabric of this community that both the public road and the private road leading to the property bear his name.
After him, his daughter, Lizzie Octavia Winston, carried the torch — developing and shaping the land, sculpting its beautiful slopes, and adding a pristine lake stocked with fresh, unpolluted fish. A testament to her devotion to this land and the life it could sustain.
Now his granddaughter, Wilhelmina, will continue what they began — not simply as a keeper of land, but as a keeper of legacy. The Winston Barn Community Health Center will transform the historic barn into a living, breathing health and education facility:
William Dabney Winston Sr. and Nannie Ella Bradley
Ground Level
Two fully equipped classrooms and a working demonstration kitchen where community members learn to prepare nourishing meals using food grown from the surrounding land.
The Loft
A sleep education room and a peaceful meditation and stress recovery room — where community members learn breathwork, mindfulness, and the art of stillness as medicine.
Virtual Conferencing
A professional virtual conferencing room allowing coaching and education to reach community members locally and far beyond Hanover County.
The Land Itself
Nine beautifully sloped acres for therapeutic walks led by nurses and certified fitness trainers, plus farming demonstrations by local farmers teaching participants to grow their own food.
“This is a barn built by the hands of a farmer who believed in the land and the people it sustains. That story alone is medicine.”
Advisory Board
Our advisory board includes nationally and internationally recognized leaders in lifestyle medicine, ensuring that everything we teach is grounded in the strongest available science.
- Neal Barnard, MD, FACC — Founder & President, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)
- Milton Mills, MD — Physician, researcher, and leading voice on plant-based nutrition and chronic disease
- Clifford Morris, MD, DipABLM — Board-certified lifestyle medicine physician
- Martin Tull, MD, DipABLM — Lifestyle medicine physician and public health advocate
- Asena Madison, MD, DipABLM — Lifestyle medicine physician
- Param Dedhia, MD — Sleep medicine physician and lifestyle medicine expert
- T. Colin Campbell, DipABLM — Biochemist and author of The China Study
- Ruby Lathon, PhD — Nutrition researcher and wellness coach
- Ann G. Glave — Hanover County Existing Business Project Management
- Steve Kurtz — Financial Business Accountant
Professional Memberships
Our work is validated by and connected to leading professional organizations in lifestyle medicine and health advocacy.
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American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM)
The leading medical professional society providing evidence-based education and certification in lifestyle medicine as the foundation of healthcare. All WTH curriculum is confirmed by ACLM ensuring strong scientific and supportive evidence. -
Metropolitan Business League
A premier regional business association supporting minority-owned businesses and community organizations. -
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)
A nonprofit organization of over 17,000 physicians and 175,000 members promoting preventive medicine and the use of nutrition as medicine.