Bay Area Children Use Sticks to Fight Flab
Pleasanton, CA --- December 08, 2008 ---Today’s children are not only growing up too fast, they’re growing too big. Many Silicon Valley youth spend their leisure time playing in virtual worlds where physical activity is not required. This lack of exercise, along with the reduction of physical education programs in schools, has exacerbated the childhood obesity epidemic. According to the Child Health and Disability Prevention Program, in California alone, 39.9 percent of children are overweight or obese by age five. That number jumps to 45.3 percent by age fourteen. To address these issues, Sticks-2-Schools, a local nonprofit organization, has developed a unique program designed to get kids moving.
Obesity a Growing Epidemic
Childhood obesity is one of the most critical health problems today. It threatens to counteract the progress that has been made in the last half century to reduce cardiovascular disease (according to the American Heart Association). In the midst of this epidemic, only eight percent of elementary schools and 6.4 percent of middle schools provide physical education programs to their students (according to the Healthy Kids Challenge program). Now in its fourth season, Sticks-2-Schools introduces lacrosse into Bay Area school’s P.E. programs to encourage children to become more physically active and have fun doing it.
Stealth Make All-Star Visits to Schools
The San Jose Stealth, the Bay Area’s professional indoor lacrosse team, has played a vital role in the success of the Sticks-2-Schools program. They manage the lessons and make player appearances at schools. Stealth Captain Colin Doyle leads the group and teaches the children how to play “soft lacrosse,” a co-ed, non-contact sport.
“At lacrosse games, I’m always pumped up and ready to get out there and do my best. It’s great to be able to share that same excitement with the kids and know I’m helping them enjoy being physically active,” said Doyle.
Stealth President and General Manager Johnny Mouradian uses his 30 years of experience as a lacrosse player and coach to help the children get comfortable with this new sport. “Lacrosse is easy to learn and fun to play. I’ve loved the sport since I was a kid and it’s a blast to teach students how to play a game they might not otherwise have learned.”
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Partnering Opportunity for Schools
Schools in the Greater Bay Area have the opportunity to bring the Sticks-2-Schools curriculum to a single location or to offer the program district-wide. Through contributions from local businesses and funding from partnering corporations, the program is offered to the schools at no charge. This comes as a much-needed boost in the midst of budget cuts and an unpredictable economy. Sticks-2-Schools donates forty lacrosse sticks and soft balls to each school funded by the program. The teachers are also given curriculum guides packed with information about how lacrosse can be implemented into all facets of education, from P.E. to history.
“Childhood obesity is a problem that often gets overlooked, yet it can cause so many additional medical problems when these overweight children grow up. It’s crucial that we step up now to get these children excited about something that could quite possibly save their lives,” said Denise Watkins, owner of the San Jose Stealth.
In a country where half of all children are expected to be overweight by 2010 (according to the International Journal of Pediatric Obesity), Sticks-2-Schools is doing what it can to reverse this trend by bringing the program to as many local elementary and middle schools as possible. Since it was founded in 2005, the nonprofit has raised $95,000 to introduce lacrosse to 38,150 children in 60 schools across the Greater Bay Area, from Gilroy to Alameda to Pittsburg.
"Sticks-2-Schools is definitely a successful program for us. We introduced it in February and the students really fed off the energy and enthusiasm of the Stealth players. The program is now fully implemented into our curriculum," said Village High School Principal Greg Giglio.
Funded Through Donations
With a growing number of schools on the waiting list, Sticks-2-Schools welcomes contributions from local organizations and individuals. It costs the nonprofit organization approximately $2,000 per school to provide equipment, training materials, and on-site visits.
“We’ll need to raise $100,000 to bring the program to the next 50 schools on the list,” said Sticks-2-Schools Founder and Teamwrkx CEO Eric Venzon. “All kids deserve a chance at a healthier life. With the help of a generous community, we’ll do our best to make that happen.”
Sticks-2-Schools is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Pleasanton, California. More information can be found at www.sticks2schools.org or by calling 925-460-8290.
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