St. Louis Children’s Hospital Sponsors Make Tracks for the Zoo Event
On June 7th, 2009, St. Louis Children’s Hospital sponsored Make Tracks for the Zoo a family-oriented walk/run at the Saint Louis Zoo. For the 11th year in a row, St. Louis Children’s Hospital has sponsored the event to encourage families to engage in physical activity. This event provided an opportunity for families to support the Zoo, while promoting a healthy family lifestyle. Several different races were offered to allow for varying fitness levels and ages. These races included a 5K Run/Walk, ½ mile and 1/4 mile kids’ races and 1-mile fun run/walk.
St. Louis Children’s Hospital sponsors this event through its Community Education program. “The focus of an event like this is to educate parents and families about the benefits of living a healthy lifestyle, in order to prevent childhood obesity,” says Carolyn Schainker, Manager of Community Education and Events at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Make Tracks for the Zoo may help get families interested in other weight management programs offered through St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Head to Toe and FAN club are programs designed to help teach kids how to live healthier lifestyles.
Head to Toe and FAN Club are weight management programs that focus on nutrition and fitness as major factors to living healthy lifestyles. Head to Toe is a 10-week program that uses nutrition and fitness activities and parent group discussions to improve children’s health for kids ages 8-17. FAN Club is a 30-week program, that offers instruction by medical professionals about nutrition, physical activity and behavioral issues.
Community Education's goal is to keep kids healthy and safe all year round by providing parents and families with information to help maintain this goal. Make Tracks for the Zoo, Head to Toe and FAN club are just some of the programs available for families through St. Louis Children’s Hospital that help promote healthy lifestyles. Community Education offers a variety of classes, activities and events to help keep children healthy and safe.