Community education series

Our first project was a series of educational forums.  The board felt that we needed to educate ourselves to the nature, scope and solutions to the problems of childhood inactivity, obesity, diabetes and other related issues.  We invited the general public to the presentations, and targeted the educational and medical communities as honored guests and participants.  Through 2007 and 2008, four programs were presented.   The first was devoted to children’s self image and self esteem.  The second was co- presented by Dr. Jimmy Unger of Lane County Coalition for Healthy Active Youth and Dan Marks PhD MD from Oregon Health Science University.  It was a joint venture with Three Rivers Community Hospital and Foundation and included formal sessions for medical professionals as well as the general public on the subject of childhood obesity and diabetes, and some of the strategies currently being used to combat the problem. The third session was devoted to the Be A Fit Kid Curriculum, which was developed (and presented) by Jennifer Slawta PhD from Southern Oregon University.  Her program has been accepted for incorporation into the Grants Pass District 7 and the Brighton Academy  curricula. The fourth session was presented by Beth Kirkpatrick from Polar Corporation, devoted to physical education programs based on heart rate monitoring.    We feel that this educational series gave us a basic understanding of relevant issues and helped us to start development of unique and innovative ways to combat childhood obesity in our community without “reinventing the wheel”.

Prescription: Motion

The KidZone Community Prescription Motion (Rx: Motion) program began in 2010 and progressed through 2019. It basically targeted weight-challenged youngsters to become more active. Grant funding allow us to offer a menu of physical activity programs through local gyms, fitness clubs and the Boys & Girls Club. There was no fee required to participate. In the final version, the activity period ran for 6 months, with extensions offered to children who had shown improvement. Physicians referred children; families met with activity providers and after a data set (BMI percentile, self image flexibility and shuttle run time was collected, 6 months of physical activity followed. The data set was again collected. An in-depth discussion of the program can be found by clicking the “Learn more” button.

A Polar Go-Fit hardware, software and staff training P.E.system was presented to Grants Pass High School June 27, 2017. It allows classes of up to 45 students participate, with individual pulse rates displayed on the instructor’s iPad. Funding was provided by KidZone Community Foundation supplemented by a generous grant from the Four Way Community Foundation. It allows students who do not thrive in traditional physical education to target goals based on their heart rates. it has been received enthusiastically by the students.

TEENS on the MOVE

The Kidzone Community Foundation is proud to support Teens on the Move.  This program:

• Encourages students to exercise EVERY DAY on their own time.

• Recognizes students who exercise consistently outside of the school day.

• Raises student awareness of the many exercise/sport opportunities that are available within our community.

Caveman Court

The local Grants Pass High School was the only high school in their conference without an outdoor basketball court. Teachers and coaches organized a fund drive and in less than a year, a site was chosen, funds were raised and students were on the court. When school is not in session, the court is open to the community. KidZone Community Foundation hosted a fund-raising musical performance by Tom Cohen, a student-athlete graduate of the school which raised funds for the project.

Blue Zones

From 2017 through 2019, Grants Pass was a Blue Zones Demonstration Project City. Dr. Richard Cohen from KidZone Community Foundation Kevin Clark, Executive Director of Grants Pass Family YMCA were the leaders of the effort to bring the program to Grants Pass. The Blue Zone Project was made possible by generous funding and logistical support from Asante Three Rivers Medical Center, Siskiyou Community Medical Center, AllCare Health and several other local organizations and individuals.

Plus

We have also presented grants of pedometers and jump ropes to primary schools, worked with Pathways to Care and partnered with Linda Hugle to acquire a Smith Family grant for a par-course which is now at Highland Elementary School.