And a Healthy New Year

Rye’s three public elementary schools, Milton, Osborn and Midland, are kicking off the New Year with a healthy start courtesy of the Rye YMCA’s Activate America school wellness grants program. With each school receiving a $1,000 grant, they will be doing their part to encourage physical fitness and healthy eating habits among school children, a primary goal of the Y’s Activate America initiative in the Sound Shore community.

Rob Castagna, a member of the Activate America coalition as well as Rye City Schools Director of PE, Health & Athletics and Chairman of the District’s School Wellness Committee, expressed his enthusiasm for the programs set forth by the winning schools: “Promoting good nutrition and physical activity at the elementary school age is so important in establishing healthy behavior that lasts a lifetime. These programs are fun and educational for kids, the school staff, and families.”

The winning projects are: Osborn (Dance, Dance Revolution), Milton (sustainable garden) and Midland (cross-curricular fitness program). Additional grant recipients include Rye Neck and Larchmont schools: sustainable garden program (Daniel Warren School); Jump Rope for Fitness (Central School); and FoodPlay nutritional theater group (F.E. Bellows).

Since 2006, the Rye YMCA and its coalition of community partners have provided approximately $30,000 in grants to fund Sound Shore schools wellness initiatives. In working across school districts and municipalities, the Activate America coalition has mobilized well over 200 volunteers to implement a wide range of nutrition and fitness programs that impact approximately 7,000 school children in the four communities served by the YMCA: Rye, Harrison, Larchmont and Mamaroneck.

For further information about Activate America and the Rye YMCA, contact Helen Gates, Director of Marketing and Strategic Initiatives, at 967-6363, ext. 101, or helengates@ryeymca.org.