Children and parents who have walked to Cloverland (201 East Johnson Avenue) will begin arriving on campus at 7:30 a.m. and will report to a special table set up by HSA to receive prizes like zipper pulls, water bottles, healthy food and physical activity brochures. The winner of a door poster contest sponsored by the school will be announced at the event. Also, the class with the most walkers will win a Jamba Juice demonstration during the class lunch period on October 4. The program will end by the 8 a.m. start of school.

“A sedentary lifestyle in children is leading to obesity and adult medical problems like adult type-onset diabetes and hypertension that are showing up more and more in children,” remarked Heather Duvall, Program Manager for HSA. “Fewer than half of California children ages 9 – 11 get the recommended one hour or more of moderate and/or vigorous physical activity per day. The statistics are alarming.”

The one-day event is designed to raise awareness to the problems of childhood obesity and to help promote healthy habits in children that will last a lifetime.

The Stanislaus County Health Services Agency (HSA) is an outpatient medical system with 10 medical offices located throughout Stanislaus County. The HSA operates the Public Health Department, an Urgent Care Center and multiple programs serving over 500,000 patients and clients each year in Stanislaus County. The HSA also is in local partnerships for the MOMobile project and the Stanislaus Family Practice Residency Program. The HSA has extensive community health information available at its web site www.hsahealth.org