Raise a glass of water to celebrate another successful ReThink YOur Drink Day!.  Students at Lakeside Elementary School took part in a taste testing event focused on naturally sweetened drinks instead of beverages with added sugars.  The water station allowed each student to taste water infused by oranges and strawberries.  At the end, over 78% of the students indicated they liked the infused water and would drink it again.  An origami flavor finder was given to participating students to promote healthy beverages based on their favorite flavors and included take-home drink recipe cards.

 

On May 8, 2019, parents and children from Corcoran joined Californians across the state to pledge to drink water or naturally-sweetened drinks instead of beverages with added sugars. Coordinated by UC CalFresh and sponsored by CalFresh Healthy Living program,  the “Rethink Your Drink Day” event attended by over 65 attendees, was held at the Corcoran Family Resource Center.  Making healthy drink choices can be easy when you're armed with the right information, like how to create a healthy drink with ingredients you have at home. The attendees were offered fruit infused water and recipes to make healthy water drinks at home.  As a fun way to encourage physical activity, parents were invited to participate in Biloterapia (dance therapy).  Others providing resources in the community were in attendance including Family Healthcare Network, 211 Kings County, Veteran Services and many more.  Overall, the “Rethink Your Drink Day” event inspired adults and children to take small steps for health like drinking more water. 

A Taste Too Good To Waste!  After school students from Jefferson Charter and Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary Schools joined with the UC CalFresh Nutrition Education Program to compete in their 2^nd annual salsa contests.  Students paired up with their parents to create their own special salsa in just 30 minutes. Non-competing students joined nutrition educators, Maria and Eldon, in physical activity and “just got up and danced”.  As soon as the salsas were prepared, students tasted and ultimately chose the best one!

Roosevelt Ready After School Program joined UC CalFresh to promote physical activity and healthy eating! Approximately 50 students participated in The Healthiest 5K Run On The Planet along with a MyPlate obstacle course! Students jumped over hurdles and ran through the hoop run, bean bag throw, ball weave, and javelin throw. Many of the students enjoyed the obstacle course so much they ran through it numerous times sharing “I'm going to do it again, it's fun!” Along with the run, students were given the opportunity to spin the Nutrition Wheel to answer MyPlate questions and were given tickets to enter a raffle. The raffle gave away jump ropes, footballs, softballs, Frisbees, chalk hockey, and books. Before it was over, students were  provided with a nutritious bag containing snacks from all five food groups including mandarins, carrots, cheese and more.  This was the third annual 5K run and UC CalFresh will continue to support students to pursue a healthy and active lifestyle!