There are 23.5 million Americans – including 6.5 million children – who live in rural and urban areas across the country that lack stores likely to sell affordable and nutritious foods, like fresh fruits and vegetables. These areas are called food deserts and earlier this year, USDA launched an interactive tool that lets you find these locations on a map.
Posted by Jessica Wahl, Youth Programs Specialist, Department of the Interior on July 20, 2011
Robert, an 18 year-old from Nova, Michigan, is a youth health advocate who is focused on creating a healthier future for youth in his community. After living through his grandmother’s struggles with diabetes, Robert felt compelled to enable others to live healthier lives through education, awareness, and advocacy. He has improved his school’s cafeteria, created a health committee that never existed at his school before, helped to start and fund two gardens in his school district, and hosted a public forum on youth health. He also taught health sessions at his local library, organized a heart health awareness day at school where he educated his peers at school about the importance of staying healthy, and organized a basketball tournament to raise money for heart disease research.
Posted by Marissa Duswalt, Truman Albright Fellow, and Max Finberg, Director, USDA Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships on July 18, 2011
For families in Phoenix, Arizona, buying groceries through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) and putting needed nutrition assistance on the kitchen table just got a little easiter. Thanks to Reverend Eve Nuñez, a new SNAP access location opened earlier this spring to assist Phoenix’s Hispanic community apply for SNAP. Through the Help 4 Kidz organization and Love International Church, more than 700 families have already gotten help in putting food on the table.
Posted by Brandi Sweet, Program Analyst, and Eric North, School Safety Specialist, Bureau of Indian Education on July 18, 2011
Each year thousands of educators unite from around the country to attend the Bureau of Indian Education’s (BIE) Summer Institute, the BIE’s largest annual training event, to work on improving American Indian/Alaska Native student education. This year was no exception: approximately 2,400 participants attended the annual event in Reno, Nevada from June 20-24, 2011. But something was a little different this year than in years past. So what was different? In the past, the event focused completely on targeting core academic areas. This year, the BIE, decided to get serious about getting healthy in Indian Country by supporting the First Lady’s Let’s Move! in Indian Country and encouraging educators to take a stand on helping to reduce childhood obesity within a generation by sponsoring several Let’s Move! in Indian Country inspired events.
Posted by Marissa Duswalt, Truman Albright Fellow, Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships on July 15, 2011
As part of Let’s Move!, First Lady Michelle Obama has challenged community and faith leaders to combat hunger. One of her goals for Let’s Move Faith and Communities is to encourage these trusted leaders to start 1,000 Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) sites where kids can gather for a healthy meal when school is out. As faith and community leaders know, however, getting meals to hungry children is much easier said than done. That’s why the Texas Hunger Initiative (THI) joined Let’s Move Faith and Communities: to help folks serve meals to the one in four children in Texas who don’t get enough to eat every summer.
Posted by Chaske Spencer, Actor and United Global Shift Ambassador on July 15, 2011
This weekend I attended the UNITY (United National Indian Tribal Youth) annual conference in Minneapolis, MN. It was an honor to be one of the speakers and to have the opportunity to talk about Lets Move! In Indian Country with the hundreds of Native youth who attended the conference. I first got involved with UNITY when I was about 15. It gave me a firmer foundation to achieve my goals, something that isn't always readily available on the reservation. It was great to see that more and more youth are not only getting involved, but are creating and supporting the projects within.
Posted by Noah Bokat-Lindell and Eugene Smith, Department of Education on July 14, 2011
Cross-posted from Ed.gov Blog
“Congratulations! Today is your day. You're off to Great Places! You're off and away!” read U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder last week to over 100 students from DC area schools and Early Head Start programs at ED's first installment of this year's Let's Read! Let's Move! series held at ED headquarters. Holder joined Secretary Duncan, NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Miss America 2011 Teresa Scanlan in kicking off the 2011 Let's Read! Let's Move! series that seeks to increase awareness of the importance of summer learning and encourage adults to read to children.
Posted by Jessica Wahl, Youth Programs Specialist at the Department of the Interior on July 13, 2011
Right after Oren Lyons, Faithkeeper of the Turtle Clan of the Onondaga Nation, eloquently described the cultural significance of the traditional lacrosse stick- the wood that connects us to the forests, the leather string that connects us to the four-legged creatures, and the medicine existing in the ball- a lone Hawk started circling above the White House. It was a moment I will never forget, admiring the contrast of the beautiful bird against the bright blue sky while listening to Iroquois Confederacy Tadodaho Sid Hill’s traditional Onondaga blessing presented in his Native language. I was lucky enough to see the reaction in Alf Jacques, Traditional Stick Maker, and Native lacrosse stars Brett Bucktooth and Jeremy Thompson from the Iroquois National team. It was 92 degrees and I had goosebumps, an early indication that this South Lawn Series (SLS) was going to be special.
DC area and Native American youth spent the morning playing lacrosse at the White House, learning both traditional and modern forms of the game as part of the South Lawn Series and Let's Move! in Indian Country. The kids explored the sport and its origins with tribal leaders, as well as professional lacrosse athletes. Visit here for more info about Let's Move! in Indian Country.
Posted by Dean Fluker, Department of Health and Human Services on July 5, 2011
Last month, the City of Memphis, Tennessee officially kicked off their Let’s Move! Program. Memphis Mayor A C Wharton, Jr. along with over 170 children showed their support for the First Lady’s Let’s Move! initiative during a celebration and announcement event at the Hickory Hill Community Center. The event kicked off with Beyonce’s Let’s Move! flash workout led by scholars from Power Center Academy, which served as a great backdrop for Mayor Wharton’s unveiling of the city’s first SAFE Zone.
Posted by Sarah Linde-Feucht, MD, Chief Public Health Officer, Health Resources and Services Administration on July 5, 2011
Everyone has a role to play in reducing childhood and adult obesity. Involvement from all levels of government, schools, community organizations, and families is key to ensuring a healthier future for America. People all across the country have started moving. From community gardens to fun fitness programs in schools, communities are doing their parts to make the goal of healthier living a reality.
Posted by Joanne Grossi, HHS Regional Director for DE, PA, MD, WV, VA, DC on June 29, 2011
During the month of May, Mayor C. Kim Bracey of York, Pennsylvania, focused on First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative of encouraging children in the City of York, Pennsylvania to become active by participating in physical activities and working towards a healthier lifestyle.
Posted by Dean Fluker, Department of Health and Human Services on June 29, 2011
In an enthusiastic response to First Lady Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative, San Diego County, California, has in turn initialized its own program, known as "Live Well, San Diego!" Among a number of sub-programs brought into existence under the “Live Well, San Diego!” umbrella, the “Healthy Works” program focuses on children in the school system. In this way, they have ensured that children will enjoy a nutritious breakfast every day, which has actually increased classroom attendance and lowered the number of nurse visits.
Posted by Jessica Wahl Youth Programs Specialist, Department of the Interior on June 29, 2011
A few days after the Lets Move Indian Country launch, the annual Native Vision Camp was held in New Mexico as part of an ongoing partnership between the NFL Players Association and the Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health. The community of Shiprock, N.M. and tribe Navajo Nation played host to the 2011 event, which highlighted the importance of health and fitness among Native American youth.
Posted by By Yvette Roubideaux, M.D., M.P.H., Director, Indian Health Service on June 23, 2011
Yesterday, one month after the official launch of Let’s Move! in Indian Country(LMIC), the Indian Health Service (IHS) visited the Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, NM to launch the IHS Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. Improving health in early childhood is a critical pillar of LMIC, and this initiative is designed to create a healthy start on life and help prevent childhood obesity. As a part of the First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign, LMIC brings together federal agencies, communities, nonprofits, corporate partners, and tribes with the goal of ending the epidemic of childhood obesity in Indian Country within a generation.
