In a continued effort to boost the prevalence of walking and build healthier, more walkable communities, Kaiser Permanente physicians and employees came out in full force again this year to mark International Walk to School Day.
The annual event brings together students and their families, school staff and teachers and community leaders to celebrate the joy of walking – and rolling for those who use wheelchairs, bicycles and strollers. The event also helps raise awareness about the importance of building safe places for physical activity.
Nationwide walk-to-school celebrations
In school communities across the country, students and their families were cheered on by wellness champions from all walks of life spreading messages about healthy living:
- In Johns Creek, Ga., Kaiser Permanente’s Educational Theatre Program employees came dressed as Doc Broc and Nurse Blueberry, characters from the popular stage plays, to encourage youth to eat healthy and get plenty of exercise.
- At Roger Heights Elementary School in Prince George’s County Md., leaders from the surrounding Port Towns community joined Kaiser Permanente, Safe Routes to School, Olympian athlete and health advocate Dominique Dawes and nearly 300 school children from ages four to twelve for a “walking school bus” followed by a series of interactive games and a healthy breakfast.
- In perhaps one of the largest coordinated efforts of the day, 33 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District participated in walk-to-school-day activities under the sponsorship of Kaiser Permanente, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation and Safe Routes to School. Students, parents and community leaders took walking school bus routes from designated locations and met other walkers at school-based celebrations designed to be fun and inspire healthy living.
Additional Kaiser Permanente sponsored or supported walk-to-school-day activities took place at schools throughout Northern California, Colorado and the Portland metropolitan area. Many schools in those regions celebrated “Walk & Roll to School Day” as a way to encourage both walking and bicycling in their school communities.
Read more about the day here.
