Kent YMCA Inspires Active Bodies and Fun at First Annual Healthy Kids Day^®:

Join the festivities on Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Morrill Meadows Park to celebrate fun and family. All activities are free and open to the public.

On Saturday, April 27 the new Kent YMCA will host its first Healthy Kids Day^®, a free community event hosted by Ys across the county to inspire more kids and families to keep their minds and bodies healthy. Families can join the fun from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Morrill Meadows Park (10828 S.E. 248 St., Kent, WA), and enter to win a free year of membership at the new Kent Y or a free week of summer camp! Learn more by visiting www.seattleymca.org/healthykidsday.

Healthy Kids Day is an opportunity to ignite children’s imaginations and get their bodies moving and to develop lifelong healthy habits. The event features activities such as games, arts and crafts, free snacks and healthy living demonstrations, prize drawings, free bike helmets to the first 200 kids, free t-shirts to the first 100 kids, and coupons for Y memberships.

Healthy Kids Day is celebrated at more than 1,500 Ys across the country and by over one million participants. The goal is to get more kids moving and learning, creating habits that they can continue all summer long. When kids are out of school, they can face hurdles that prevent them from reaching their full potential. Research shows that without access to out-of-school learning activities, kids fall behind academically. Kids also gain weight twice as fast during summer months than during the school year. As spring turns to summer, Healthy Kids Day is a powerful reminder not to let children idle away their summer days. Instead, the Y wants families to focus on helping children imagine what they can accomplish this summer and beyond.

“When a child is healthy, happy, and supported they can make great things happen,” says Wendy Bart, Chief Membership and Health Officer for the YMCA of Greater Seattle. “We believe in the potential of all children, and we strive to help kids find that potential within themselves. A child’s development is never on vacation, and Healthy Kids Day is a great opportunity to educate families and motivate kids to stay active in spirit, mind and body throughout the summer.”

Kaiser Permanente and the Physio Foundation are proud local sponsors of Healthy Kids Day in the Greater Seattle Area. Kaiser Permanente will provide free bike helmets to the first 200 kids at each of the 11 participating locations. Thanks to a generous contribution by the Physio Foundation, Y instructors will hold free compression only CPR training as well.

Keeping Kids Healthy All Year Long
In celebration of the Y’s Healthy Kids Day, the Y offers the following tips to help families develop healthy habits that can have a lifetime effect:

High Five the Fruits and Veggies – Make sure kids get at least five servings of fruits and veggies each day, the minimum number nutritionists recommend for healthy childhood development. And to keep kids’ taste buds evolving, have everyone in the family try at least one bite of a new fruit or vegetable at least once a month.
Read Together – The summer is a great time to enjoy books with summer program participants—and 30 minutes a day goes a long way! Take trips to the local library or create a family reading challenge to see who can log the most minutes of reading. Encourage youth to create their own stories as well.
Get Moving! – Activities that require movement also help kids flex their mental muscle. Use materials in unique ways: ask youth to build models, manipulate tools or develop their own theatrical scenes.
Play Together – Play may be the best way to prevent childhood obesity. By putting more play into your family’s day, you will soon find yourself getting the activity that will have your family feeling energized and strong.
Make sleep a priority – Doctors recommend 10 to 12 hours of sleep a day for children ages five through 12 and seven to eight hours per night for adults. Sleep plays a critical role in maintaining our healthy immune system, metabolism, mood, memory, and learning.

For more information, visit www.seattleymca.org/healthykidsday.

Opening this fall: the Kent Y
The new Kent Y opens in the fall of 2019. The new facility will offer community gathering spaces and an aquatic center with lap lanes and swim areas as well as gym, group fitness, and cardio spaces. The indoor facilities are complimented by outdoor recreation in the expanded Morrill Meadows Park. The new Y in Kent will bring a significant expansion of school, child care, and enrichment programs for youth. Anyone can sign-up as a charter member and qualify for the charter member gift pack by visiting: https://www.seattleymca.org/locations/kent-ymca