| [Wednesday,August 29 2007] |
Economic Development / News / News / |
A path lies between Parker-Bennett-Curry Elementary School and Girls Inc., worn from the feet of students who walk back and forth between the two.
Now, those students will have a paved trail, complete with exercise stations along the way, after the Bowling Green City Schools Board of Education approved the more than $16,000
donation from Commonwealth Health Corp.
“It will be beneficial,” said Patty Alford, director of Girls Inc. “We are pushing for the girls to eat healthier and exercise, and that will be another tool we can use to get the girls to walk more. And hopefully they'll enjoy it, so it will inspire them to exercise more.”
CHC received the $16,000 grant from Kohl's Care for Kids Program, said Lindsey Greathouse, marketing development associate for CHC.
One of the requirements was for the project to focus on community wellness, she said, “so we decided to build a walking trail. It's to promote physical fitness. Nowadays, with technology and video games, kids don't want to do physical activities. So this gives them easy access.”
Obesity is an increasing problem across the country, according to a study released this week by the Trust for America's Health. Kentucky ranked seventh in the nation, with 27.5 percent of the population considered obese.
The grant is funded by sales of certain stuffed animals and books found at the front of Kohl's department story, Greathouse said.
The construction of a walking trail puts Parker-Bennett-Curry Elementary in line with three other elementary schools - Potter Gray, Dishman-McGinnis and W.R. McNeill - within the city school district, as well as some Warren County Schools, including Natcher and Briarwood elementary schools.
Last school year, CHC received the same grant (for more than $13,000) from Kohl's, which was used to put a walking trail at Briarwood Elementary.
In addition to the walking trail, students will take part in CHC's Healthy Kids Club, said Leslie Peek, public relations coordinator for city schools.
Peek said walking trails are geared more toward fitness and health programs, while “Safe Routes” are more focused on walking to school or riding bikes to school with their parents. And while walking trails are built to give students easier access to daily fitness, they do double as a safe way to school.
“If we have a walk to school day, kids will use walking trails to take a lap or ride their bikes,” Peek said.
All five Bowling Green elementary schools participate in the Safe Routes to School program. While the program works differently in each school, they all have groups of community members or committees working to get kids to school safely, she said.
The Safe Routes to School Program is a national program funded through the federal highway bill approved in 2005, Greenways Coordinator Helen Siewers said.
“And the tagline of the program is ‘Changing the habits of a generation,' ” she said. “It was natural for people to walk and ride bikes, but that has changed over the last generation. Childhood obesity and medical issues go along with that change in lifestyle.”
The program places an emphasis on walking, biking and the five Es - enforcement, education, encouragement, engineering and evaluation - she said.
“Positive results of this program are there has been an inventory of sidewalk needs, and the city is taking a proactive step in looking at safe routes,” she said. “It's also really provided momentum for the city sidewalk evaluation.”
Siewers noted the “walking school bus,” in which a group of children are led by an adult in the McNeill neighborhood, and said the children enjoy it.
“Kentucky is a leader in this program,” she said.
The program help kids by ensuring they have a safe route to and from school, Alford said, and adding the trail at Parker-Bennett-Curry Elementary is another way to provide both safety and physical activity.
“It keeps them from walking out toward the road and keeps them between the two properties,” she said. “And they'll be encouraged to exercise more.” |
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