Several years ago, a former teacher and a retired insurance executive chatted about a waitress they knew whose future was getting swallowed by a $10,000 medical bill.

At that moment, a grassroots effort to educate and empower the uninsured was born.

Grassroots Health of Copley Township recently started marketing to customers who lack health insurance, but possess a desire to grow healthier.

In Summit County alone, an estimated 70,000 people lack health insurance.

The company is partnering with SummaCare to link uninsured residents with high-deductible health-insurance plans that offer protection against catastrophic illnesses, as well as coverage for preventive care.

Customers then pay an extra $79 per year to Grassroots to get access to Web-based learning modules, custom newsletters and encouragement by telephone or e-mail to make good behavior and lifestyle choices, Grassroots President and co-founder Joan Mann said.

''We are not treating the medical issues,'' she said. ''It is motivational, inspirational and educational.''

Someone who is trying to exercise, for example, might get regular e-mails or phone calls encouraging them to start small and not give up.

''We're ordinary people helping ordinary people,'' she said. ''And we think that's the whole point of it all.''

The idea behind the new company is to bring the ''health-coach'' concept to people in the individual health-insurance market, Mann said.

Health coaching — sometimes known as wellness coaching — increasingly is being embraced by large employers and big health insurers to provide one-on-one support to help people improve their health and deal with medical problems.

Some doctors' practices nationwide also are employing health coaches, who work with patients to help them self-manage their health and meet personal goals, such as losing weight, exercising or keeping a chronic illness under control.

An estimated 60 percent of large U.S. companies surveyed by international consulting firm Watson Wyatt offer health coaching services to employees. Two years ago, about 53 percent of the 453 responding companies offered the benefit to their collective 8.4 million employees.

But people who must buy insurance on their own typically don't have access to such services from their employer or their insurance plan, Mann said.

To form Grassroots Health, Mann teamed up with her daughter, Susan, and Aaron Richardson, a 65-year-old retired broker and executive from Bath Township who previously ran his own property/casualty
insurance business in California.

''Hopefully,'' he said, ''we can make a difference.''

During the past couple years, the Manns and Richardson did research and looked at the individual insurance options in the region.

Mann, 66, of Medina, used her background as a former English teacher to research and write many of the informational and motivational materials, while her daughter developed the Web site (http://www.grassroots-health.com).

Officials of Akron-based SummaCare agreed to partner with the initiative.

''We still fundamentally believe all health care is local, and the way to address health care is locally,'' SummaCare President Marty Hauser said. ''We actually commend them on trying to do something.''

Anyone who applies to Grassroots must first apply for SummaCare coverage.

The plans cover many wellness and preventive services, including doctor's visits, for a $40 copay without any deductible requirements. Most other health-care services under the two plans are subject to annual deductibles of $5,000 or $10,000.

For healthy individuals, the plans can cost less than $100 a month.

Not everyone, however, will qualify for health coverage.

All applicants go through the same underwriting protocol, meaning their age, gender and health status is taken into consideration to determine their monthly premium and whether they qualify for individual coverage. Grassroots members aren't given special consideration, Hauser said.

Even if people are denied coverage through SummaCare, they still can become members of Grassroots, Mann said.

To encourage people to join, Grassroots is waiving its $79 annual fee for the initial year for the first 1,000 members.

''Our goal is to empower people,'' she said. ''If you just buy health insurance, you're not changing much of anything.''

Grassroots' founders estimate they have invested about $5,000 to $7,500 in the start-up venture, mostly on legal fees and computer costs. To keep costs down, Grassroots is sharing office space with Mann's husband's business, Matrix Plastics Co.

The company is focusing primarily on Summit County for now, Mann said, but wants to expand in the future.