Federal program targets obesity
Sunday, September 24, 2006
By NATALIA E. ARBULĂš
narbulu@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - John F. Kennedy Middle School seventh-grader Jose Velasquez jumped onto the inflated basketball court in the school gym with a fearlessness that could impress Michael Jordan.
While he was airborne, Jose, 13, spun around, dunked the ball and fell freely to the bouncy surface below.
Hundreds of Kennedy students had several chances to fly through the air and dunk balls through the VERB Yellowball program, which seeks to motivate youth to remain active by giving them a yellow ball to play with.
The Yellowball program is part of the VERB campaign developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to fight childhood obesity.
Team leader Rico Tarver said VERB Yellowball is conducting a regional tour that will bring the program to youth at area schools and the Big E in West Springfield.
The nonprofit program visits different cities each week to spread the message that youth need to be physically active.
The program targets youth between the ages of 9 and 13 because "that is the age where they become athletes or couch potatoes. We tell the kids that it is OK if they are not an athlete, but we want them to be active," Tarver said.
Kennedy students participated in the program during their gym period, said Laurie Ducharme-Stawicki, chairwoman of the school's physical education department.
Ducharme-Stawicki said students seemed very excited about the program. "The goal is to get them moving," she said.
Tarver told his audience to stay active. Each participant received a Yellowball and were told to play with it, visit the VERB Yellowball Web site, and pass the ball on to other children.
VERB Yellowball is giving away more than 500,000 balls, each with its own code that can be tracked on the program's Web site, Tarver said.
Jose said he enjoyed the activity. "It's a good idea. It's fun. That basketball thing kills you, but in a good way," he said.
Seventh-grader Kristine Williams, 12, took a different approach than Jose. Instead of jumping onto the court, Kristine carefully walked across it and placed the Yellowball into the hoop.
Kristine said she did not want to lose her balance.
She said the program was the best gym experience she had had so far.
"I think it's a really good campaign because I like to be active. I don't like to just sit at home and sit on the couch, I like to ride my bike," she said.
Childhood Obesity Fight 
Linear Mode
