Dissemination Partner
Let’s Go! York County
Contact:
Bethany Fortier, MPH
Healthy Maine Partnership Project Director
UHC – Saco
655 Main Street, 1st Floor
Saco, ME 04072
Phone: 207.602.3555
Fax: 207.283.4138
bfortier@une.edu
Contact:
Valerie Costello, CHES
Let’s Go! Program Coordinator
Southern Maine Medical Center
PO Box 626
Biddeford, ME 04005
Phone: 207.283-7919
cr.vac@smmc.org
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“Sugar Out Day” in Old Orchard Beach Schools
BIDDEFORD, Maine – March 29, 2012 – Jameson Elementary School and Loranger Middle School in Old Orchard Beach held a “Sugar Out Day” on Friday, March 9. Students from Loranger Middle School dressed in fruit and vegetable costumes borrowed from Coastal Healthy Communities Coalition, and they delivered healthy snacks and toothbrushes to all Jameson Elementary and Loranger Middle School classrooms. Both schools have been part of an Oral Health Program through the Division of Oral Health for the past 25 years. The program provides toothbrushes, and University of New England (UNE) dental students perform free assessments and dental health education to the students. UNE hosts a dental clinic day that provides dental care.
Jameson Elementary School and Loranger Middle School has been a Coordinated School Health site funded through the Fund for Healthy Maine since 2002. RSU 23 recently has lost their grant funding. “The Coordinated School Health Program allowed us to qualify for grants and funding opportunities to create staff and manage health initiatives like this that are not available to us through the regular school budget. Healthy students are better learners and these types of programs teach older students to help younger ones and connect health education with fun activities and hopefully, promote lifelong health habits,” said Jackie Tselikis, part time Coordinated School Health consultant for RSU 23.
Healthy snacks provided to the students during “Sugar Out Day” included fresh apples, bananas and low-fat cheese sticks. Jameson Elementary and Loranger Middle School are registered Let’s Go 5210 sites and part of Let’s Go York County. These schools have utilized Let’s Go mini-grants to develop a school garden, an after-school yoga program, and a lunch-time walking program.
In addition, Jameson Elementary school has implemented a Breakfast in the Classroom program led by Katrina Stryker, Food Service Manager. Each classroom is provided a beverage bin, which includes low-fat white milk and orange juice, and a hot meal bin. Classrooms are also provided low-sugar cereals and either fresh or cupped fruit. Teachers are encouraged to eat the breakfast meals provided with their classrooms to promote healthy role modeling. The program recently has been implemented at Loranger Middle School.
About Let’s Go! York County
Let’s Go! is a nationally recognized childhood obesity prevention program. The goal of Let’s Go! is to increase physical activity and healthy eating for children from birth to 18 through policy and environmental change. Let’s Go! works in six sectors to reach families where they live, study, work and play to reinforce the importance of healthy eating and physical activity. A program of The Kids CO-OP at The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital at Maine Medical Center, Let’s Go! is implemented in partnership with MaineHealth. In addition, Let’s Go! and the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, DHHS, have engaged in a public-private partnership to improve the health of youth and families through the work of the Healthy Maine Partnerships.
