Nearly $45,000 awarded to three projects that help combat childhood obesity

Nearly $45,000 from the Blue Grass Community Foundation and Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky is being invested in three projects that target childhood obesity. The recipients are Seedleaf and East 7th Street Center ($19,998); the YMCA of Central Kentucky ($15,000); and the Girl Scouts of Kentucky's Wilderness Road ($10,000).

The S.E.E.D.S. Project will get 12- and 13-year-old students growing and selling fresh fruits and vegetables in the Williams Wells Brown neighborhood in Lexington, which is otherwise short on available fresh produce. The goal is to teach the students about healthy eating, as well as educate them about social entrepreneurship. The project runs from March to November.

YMCA of Central Kentucky, which has three locations in Lexington, will use its funding to launch "Take 10," a school-based physical activity program designed for kindergarten to fifth-grade students. The goal of the program is to integrate 10 minutes of physical activity with academic exercises. The program will be piloted in Picadome Elementary in Fayette County and Southside Elementary in Woodford County. Eventually, the Y hopes to expand the program in all 14 schools where it has an after-school program.

The Girl Scouts funds will be used to engage 100 girls from low-economic backgrounds to participate in health and wellness activities. The girls will train for the Thin Mint Sprint 5K, which is in May.

This is the second time the Blue Grass Community Foundation and the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky have partnered to invest in community projects. "These three projects offer exciting examples of ways communities can help overcome childhood obesity by creating environments that support healthy eating and active living," said Susan Zepeda, president and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. (Read more)