Health Fair Teaches That Choices Are Part of What Makes People Healthy and Safe
By Jennifer Kapiolani Saxton, Belleville News-Democrat, Ill.
Feb. 9–EDWARDSVILLE — A healthy life is much more than just eating right and exercising, said a Lincoln Middle School student Thursday during the school’s health fair.
“I think it’s not only doing sports, but also about making the right choices,” eighth-grader Caty Ponce, 13, said.
More than 500 eighth-graders attended the annual middle school health fair, Passport to Fitness, which welcomed about 25 booths ranging from nutrition to cancer.
Master Trooper Ralph Timmins sat behind his booth, teaching students about safety on bikes, buses and the Internet.
While the students walked from booth to booth, Timmins asked them how much time they spent on the Internet and what they liked to do while on it.
“I’ve been asking them when they come around. Many of the eighth-graders say they have a MySpace account while many of the sixth- and seventh-graders are mostly using the instant messaging,” Timmins said.
He said more children are getting on MySpace, and without any policing it’s “huge and scary.”
While Jasmine McMurray, 14, said she doesn’t spend a lot of time on her MySpace account, she only accepts people she knows as her friends on her site.
“I deny them if I don’t know them,” Jasmine said.
Other activities at the health fair included the drunk goggles, courtesy of the Edwardsville Police Department; lifting weights with the Edwardsville High School Weightlifting Club; and a chance to play the Dance, Dance Extreme video game with the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Kinesiology Department.
“Our ultimate goal is to equip them with the means to make positive choices to live a healthy lifestyle,” said Mark Tschundy, middle school prevention counselor.
Contact reporter Jennifer Kapiolani Saxton at jsaxton@bnd.com or 345-7822, ext. 23.
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Copyright (c) 2007, Belleville News-Democrat, Ill.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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