On Saturday, April 29, the Springfield YMCA is holding a free community event to inspire more kids to keep their mindsand bodies active. The annual YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day® is the Y’s national initiative to improve health and well-being for kids and families.
This year’s event will feature the Hy-Vee® Healthy Kid’s Day Triathlon and Festival. The triathlon is the second annual and is open to children between the ages of 5-14. Depending on age category, the triathlon will be a 50-300-yard swim, followed by a 1-3.5-mile bike ride and end with a .25-1.25 mile run. Winners will be acknowledged in five different age and gender categories. Registration forms can be found atwww.springfieldymca.org/healthykidsday and at both YMCA facilities. To guarantee a t-shirt, registration needs to be received by April 24. During the triathlon, the Y will be hosting a free family Festival. This event includes games, a bounce house, kids’ exercise activities and over a dozen vendors showcasing healthy living and kids’ safety. The Hy-Vee® Healthy Kids Day takes place at the Kerasotes YMCA at 4550 W. Iles. The race and festival will both begin at 9:00 a.m. with the day concluding around noon.
All proceeds from the triathlon will benefit the YMCA Strong Kids Scholarship Fund. No one is turned away from the YMCA for their inability to pay. Last year the Springfield Y served over 18,000 youth. They provided 2,864 youth and family scholarship memberships and 145 summer camp weeks to underprivileged youth ages 5-14. They also provided programming to an additional 217 participants who are physically or mentally disadvantaged.
YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day, celebrated at over 1,600 Ys across the country by over 1.2 million participants, works to get more kids moving and learning, creating habits that they continue all summer long. When kids are out of school, they can face hurdles that prevent them from reaching their full potential. Research shows that without access to out-of-school learning activities, kids fall behind academically. Summer learning loss is more pronounced among students from low-income families. Kids also gain weight twice as fast during the summer than the school year. As spring turns to summer, Healthy Kids Day is a powerful reminder not to let children idle away their summer days.
“When a child is healthy, happy, motivated and excited something amazing is inevitably going to result. A child’s development is never on vacation and Healthy Kids Day is a great opportunity to educate families and motivate kids to stay active in spirit, mind and body throughout the summer,” says Angie Sowle, CEO of the Springfield YMCA.
YMCAs Healthy Kids Day is made possible by the Ys title sponsor, Hy-Vee, by our Event Sponsors, Hickory Point Bank, Illinois Pork Producers, Memorial SportsCare and Wheel Fast Bicycle Co., and by our Course Sponsors, CEFCU, Chapman Stone, Mosquito Squad, Next Day Signs, Solution Printing, and Springfield Running Center.
