Megan DiskinThis morning, a Redondo Beach health agency is kicking off its third year of an anti-obesity program which closely resembles a Flintstones cartoon.
Beach Cities Health District is in its third year of “Walking School Bus,” an anti-obesity program in which a group of kids from Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach actually — yes — walk to school. Please read on:
The preventive healthcare agency, in association with the Blue Zones Project, is helping improve the health and wellness of beach city kids by getting their morning exercise in with a safe but robust stroll to school.
It used to be common in America, now it's a special program.
Children who live within a mile of their school will meet up with other classmates at designated “bus stops” stocked with parent volunteers to oversee the safe travels. The health agency provides the safety training to volunteers who supervise the walk.
Thirteen schools participate, and the kids take 26 routes to and from school.
BCHD Chief Medical Officer Dr. Lisa Santora said this in a press release:
“If we're going to make a healthy change, it has to start with our young people. And that's where the Walking School Bus comes in. It provides kids and parents with the infrastructure to meet up with friends and neighbors, and safely walk to school together.”
The program goes until the end of the school year, and so do the kids.
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