4. AN INDIVIDUAL REALLY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

?From Albuquerque to Philadelphia, many of the local programs highlighted by ACFN began as little more than a spark of inspiration by a member of the community.

Susan Herr, M.Ed., of the YMCA of the Brandywine Valley, a five-branch YMCA Association located in Chester County, PA, developed a 12-week Health Intervention Program (H.I.P. Kids) for children eight and older because she was aware of the data on the obesity trend and believed she could see the rise of obesity amid kids visiting the YMCA. She began a simple program called “Conditioning Kids,” bringing in children for 30 minutes of activity such as swimming, volleyball and walking. When Susan moved into her current role as community health initiative director at the YMCA of the Brandywine Valley, she put her training as an exercise specialist to use by establishing the H.I.P. Kids intervention program. “I love teaching new skills, and there are none needed more than those that will prevent or reduce the chances of becoming overweight and its related health risks,” she said. “This is my passion.”

The program has achieved results. In one pilot, 64 percent of participants decreased body mass index (BMI), 45 percent had a decrease in both blood pressure and resting heart rate and 91 percent achieved significant improvements in fitness tests that include a one-mile run, push-ups, sit-ups and flexibility.

H.I.P. Kids recently hit another important milestone when Independence Blue Cross Insurance agreed to reimburse participants for a portion of the program costs, a move that contributed to more than 20 other YMCA branches in Pennsylvania and New Jersey adopting H.I.P. Kids.

“It’s a five-year intervention in which we’re tacking obesity, diabetes and asthma. It earned a significant grant for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

?Mayor Will Wynn, Austin, TX

Because she wanted to get kids committed to fitness at an early age, Austin’s Kay Morris founded Marathon Kids®, a free program to teach elementary school children the benefits of running, walking and nutrition. Her work to have her program integrated into local schools as an innovative physical fitness option is born of little more than her passion for the cause. “I simply saw an opportunity to make a difference for children, and I pursued it,” said Morris. There are over 100,000 kindergartners through fifth graders in Texas that participate. The children run 26.2 miles over six months and are challenged to eat five fruits and vegetables 26.2 days in a month. The free program will become national in 2006, beginning in a few cities outside of Texas. There are 270 towns and cities on the Marathon Kids® waiting list and thirteen foreign countries.

?Jennifer Eve of Oklahoma City remembers the day she made a commitment to combating overweight and obesity among children. “It was my seven-year-old daughter’s birthday. We had a pool party in our back yard, and many of the children there were overweight.” she explained. “They come from good, strong, caring families, but they are fighting a battle. I thought, I don’t know what to do, but I’ve got to do something.”

Jennifer has been a longtime television personality in the Oklahoma City market. Over the course of the next year, she and a colleague who owned a production company teamed with a local dietitian to create Together at the Table, a three-minute segment that runs twice weekly on KWTV Channel 9 and is re-run multiple times on another local channel throughout each week. Sponsored by the Integris Health and the Oklahoma Fit Kids Coalition, Together at the Table teaches young working parents how to prepare basic, healthy, tasty recipes at home for their children. And it teaches the benefits of committing to sit down at the table to share meals as a family. Lanell Olson, the Registered Dietitian who is part of Together at the Table provides her company’s expertise in menu planning and nutritional analysis of the meals that are showcased. The popularity of the program has prompted KOTV-6 in Tulsa to pick up Together at the Table to run in its newscasts beginning in January 2006.

Jennifer’s moment of inspiration spawned a coalescence of local healthcare experts, a major local TV station and other parties with an interest in children’s health. The program has generated incredibly positive feedback for KWTV News 9, and Jennifer and her team are seeking out opportunities for national syndication.