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[IN] MTC HEA
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-- WITH PHOTO -- TO HEALTH, AND NATIONAL EDITORS:
Boys & Girls Clubs of America and WellPoint Foundation Announce $10
million National Partnership to Improve Youth Health
ATLANTA, March 13, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Boys & Girls Clubs
of America (BGCA) today announced that the WellPoint Foundation has
committed $10 million to serve as a Great Futures signature partner of
BGCA's healthy lifestyles platform. Through WellPoint Foundation's
significant investment, the partnership will advance BGCA's efforts to
combat the growing rate of childhood obesity among our nation's youth
through the holistic health and wellness program, Triple Play.
Triple Play: A Game Plan for the Mind, Body and Soul, is BGCA's proven
health and wellness program co-sponsored by the WellPoint Foundation
and founding partner The Coca-Cola Company. Since launching in 2005,
Triple Play has made more than 7.6 million connections with kids to
share the importance of physical activity and proper nutrition through
the program's three components focused on mind, body and soul.
WellPoint Foundation's five-year $10 million commitment builds upon a
longstanding relationship between the organizations and will help
bring critical nutrition and exercise programming to more communities
and Clubs throughout the nation.
"Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is an essential component for youth
to achieve great futures," said Jim Clark, President and CEO of Boys &
Girls Clubs of America. "WellPoint Foundation's continued support will
help create a culture of wellness at our Clubs and enable us to reach
more kids and communities to change the trajectory of youth health. We
are truly grateful for their support as a signature partner of our
Great Futures Campaign, which seeks to raise the national dialogue and
advocate on behalf of all of America's kids. Together, we can
transform an entire generation."
The Great Futures Campaign is BGCA's unprecedented initiative to
mobilize the country to ensure great futures for America's youth by
inspiring the next generation to be successful, healthy and engaged
citizens. BGCA, along with our Great Futures partners, is leading the
way to assure that every young person who enters our doors is on track
to graduate college or career ready, demonstrating good character and
living a healthy lifestyle.
The announcement of WellPoint Foundation's groundbreaking support
marks the first public partnership of the Campaign. This significant
investment is instrumental in enabling BGCA to further its Great
Futures Impact Plan in the area of health and wellness. Together with
WellPoint Foundation, BGCA has set a goal of 9.1 million connections
with the Triple Play program over the next five years. It will help
create an environment that emphasizes health and wellness, including
nutrition-related activities that underscore portion control, a
balanced diet and improving access to healthy food choices. Daily
challenges including competitive sports and non-competitive physical
activities will help Club members learn to work as part of a team.
"Together, with community organizations and nonprofits across the
country, WellPoint Foundation is working to improve health and
strengthen communities," said Lance Chrisman, WellPoint Foundation
executive director. "This grant - the largest in the history of our
foundation - is being made because we've seen the success of the
Triple Play program first-hand and we know it's critical to the future
health of our country. We're proud to work with Boys & Girls Clubs of
America to encourage kids to have fun while eating healthier foods,
becoming more physically active and feeling better about themselves."
A study of more than 2,000 children ages 9-14 who attend Boys & Girls
Clubs showed that Triple Play succeeded in getting them to exercise
more and eat healthier foods. Kids who participated in Triple Play
increased to 90 percent of the federally recommended amount of daily
exercise, which is 60 minutes a day for children, while their peers
outside the program decreased to 78 percent.
During the past three years, the WellPoint Foundation committed $5
million to support Triple Play as a part of its ongoing work to
promote healthy, active lifestyles. Through its Healthy Generations
grant platform, WellPoint Foundation identifies public health issues
in need of addition and then directs its financial support and
volunteer efforts toward improving health in those areas. The new
grant will also continue WellPoint Foundation's support for BGCA's
Military Youth of the Year. Founded last year with support from
WellPoint's National Government Services Foundation, Military Youth of
the Year is a distinct component of BGCA's longstanding National Youth
of the Year initiative. It honors outstanding teens from
BGCA-affiliated youth centers on U.S. military installations worldwide
and recognizes one to serve as an advocate for military youth.
Learn more about the program and partnership at bgca.org/tripleplay.
About Boys & Girls Clubs of America For more than 100 years, Boys &
Girls Clubs of America (GreatFutures.org) has enabled young
people most in need to achieve great futures as productive, caring,
responsible citizens. Today, more than 4,000 Clubs serve nearly 4
million young people through Club membership and community outreach.
Clubs are located in cities, towns, public housing and on Native
lands throughout the country, and serve military families in
BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations
worldwide. They provide a safe place, caring adult mentors, fun and
friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily
basis during critical non-school hours. Club programs promote academic
success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyles. In a
Harris Survey of alumni, 57 percent said the Club saved their lives.
National headquarters are located in Atlanta. Learn more at
http://bgca.org/facebook and http://bgca.org/twitter.
About WellPoint Foundation The WellPoint Foundation is the
philanthropic arm of WellPoint, Inc. and through charitable
contributions and programs, the Foundation promotes the inherent
commitment of WellPoint, Inc. to enhance the health and well-being of
individuals and families in communities that WellPoint, Inc. and its
affiliated health plans serve. The Foundation focuses its funding on
strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to
health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations
Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease
states and medical conditions. These disease states and medical
conditions include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth
weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long term activities that
decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence
in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations
and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company's
annual associate giving campaign and provides a 50 percent match of
associates' campaign pledges. To learn more about the WellPoint
Foundation, please visit www.wellpointfoundation.org and its blog at
http://wellpointfoundation.tumblr.com.
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130710/MM44829-b
SOURCE Boys & Girls Clubs of America
-0- 03/13/2014
/CONTACT: Nicole McCloskey, (404) 487-5962, nmccloskey@bgca.org
/Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130710/MM44829-b
PRN Photo Desk photodesk@prnewswire.com
/Web Site: http://www.bgca.org
CO: Boys & Girls Clubs of America
ST: Georgia
IN: MTC HEA
SU: CHI
PRN
-- DC82124 --
0000 03/13/2014 13:00:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com
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