Press Releases
WinterKids Awarded Grant by Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation to Benefit "Winter Health For Preschoolers"
March 12, 2008
PORTLAND, Maine: WinterKids was recently awarded a $20,000 grant from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation, to expand current K – 12 WinterKids Outdoor Learning Curriculum educational programming to include “Winter Health for Preschoolers.”
WinterKids received many requests from Maine preschool teachers for programs that help the youngest students learn and be physically active outside during the winter. According to the Institute of Medicine, over the past thirty years, obesity rates have tripled for preschool children age 2 – 5. Although the issue of childhood obesity is complex, the WinterKids mission to promote healthy lifestyles is part of the solution.
This winter, a team of WinterKids staff and volunteers, including teachers Jo Dill, Liz Lindsay, and Eric Hendrickson, created developmentally appropriate preschool lessons that link academic learning with outdoor activity. Based on the successful WinterKids Outdoor Learning Curriculum for elementary school children, the new preschool lessons were greeted with enthusiasm by both children and early childhood educators. WinterKids Program Director, Marion Doyle, will showcase the new preschool lessons at the Child Care Connections training for childcare providers on March 15 in Gorham.
WinterKids is the non-profit organization dedicated to helping children develop lifelong habits of health, education, and physical fitness through participation in outdoor, winter activity.
WinterKids Welcome To Winter Festival: February 2, 2008 at CMCC
January 30, 2008
AUBURN, Maine: On Saturday February 2, 2008, WinterKids is hosting the 3rd Annual Lewiston-Auburn WinterKids Welcome to Winter festival, a free event for local immigrant and refugee families, in conjunction with the City of Auburn’s Winter Festival. WinterKids will be offering fun activities, warm clothing, education, and healthy snacks at the Central Maine Community College site from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.
Diverse businesses and community groups are coming together for the WinterKids Welcome to Winter festival to provide a helping hand to immigrant and refugee families in Maine. Climate, a new culture, and unfamiliarity with recreation opportunities provide challenges that may keep people inside during Maine's longest season. Many families new to Maine are experiencing winter for the first time and need assistance to help them learn about how to properly navigate the cold, snow, and ice, and also how to have winter fun!
WinterKids will have information and activities geared around showing our newest residents how to properly dress and move in the winter, and how to enjoy outdoor activities in winter. All local immigrant and refugee families are invited to attend this free event. Local residents are also invited to welcome these new Mainers to winter.
L.L.Bean’s Outdoor Discovery School will bring snowshoes for an adventurous trek across the field. Flexible Flyer has donated sleds which will be raffled off to families. Healthy Androscoggin will be adding to the fun with active games. Hannaford Supermarkets is providing healthy snacks and Time Warner Cable is serving up hot chocolate to keep the fun warm. And many of the immigrant and refugee families will stay warm after the festival is over thanks to clothing donated by Horny Toad, Joe Jones Ski Shop, and South Portland’s Long Creek Youth Development Center.
Julia McDonald, a first-year medical student at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, will be on hand to answer medical questions about dressing properly and keeping safe in the wintertime. And serving as Master of Ceremonies is News 8’s Chief Meteorologist Tom Chisholm. Finally, WinterKids volunteers will serve as helpers for snow person and fort building, sled riding, and fire pit tending. WinterKids would like to thank all of our sponsors, community partners, and volunteers for helping Maine’s newest residents experience the joys and benefits of healthy, outdoor winter activity!
WinterKids is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping Maine children develop lifelong habits of health, education, and physical fitness through participation in outdoor, winter activity. WinterKids sponsors include Hannaford Supermarkets, Healthy Maine Partnerships, TD Banknorth, and Time Warner Cable. For more information, visit www.winterkids.org.
WinterKids Welcome To Winter Festival: January 26, 2008 in Portland's Payson Park
January 24, 2008
PORTLAND, Maine: On Saturday January 26, 2008, WinterKids is hosting the 4th Annual WinterKids Welcome to Winter festival, a free event for local immigrant and refugee families, in Portland’s Payson Park from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.
Diverse businesses and community groups, including Portland’s Multilingual and Multicultural Office, are coming together for the WinterKids Welcome to Winter festival to provide a helping hand to immigrant and refugee families in Maine. Climate, a new culture, and unfamiliarity with recreation opportunities provide challenges that may keep people inside during Maine's longest season. Many families new to Maine are experiencing winter for the first time and need assistance to help them learn about how to properly navigate the cold, snow, and ice, and also how to have winter fun!
WinterKids will have information and activities geared around showing our newest residents how to properly dress and move in the winter, and how to enjoy outside activities in winter. All local immigrant and refugee families are invited to attend this free event. Local residents are also invited to welcome these new Mainers to winter.
L.L Bean Outdoor Discovery School Staff will bring snowshoes for trekking and offer tips for dressing in cold weather. Flexible Flyer has donated sleds so that families can try a thrilling ride down a snow covered hill. Let’s Go! and Healthy Portland are both adding to the fun with active games. Hannaford Supermarkets is providing healthy snacks and Time Warner Cable is serving up hot chocolate to keep the fun warm. And many of the immigrant and refugee families will stay warm after the festival is over thanks to clothing donated by Horny Toad and Joe Jones Ski Shop.
Dr. Elizabeth Rothe of Maine Medical Center will be on hand to answer medical questions about keeping safe and healthy in the wintertime. Finally, WinterKids volunteers will serve as helpers for snow person and fort building, sled riding, and fire pit tending. WinterKids would like to thank Portland’s Multilingual and Multicultural Office, Portland Parks and Recreation, the volunteers, and all of our sponsors for helping Maine’s newest residents experience the joys and benefits of healthy, outdoor winter activity!
WinterKids is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping Maine children develop lifelong habits of health, education, and physical fitness through participation in outdoor, winter activity. WinterKids sponsors include Hannaford Supermarkets, Healthy Maine Partnerships, TD Banknorth, and Time Warner Cable. For more information, visit www.winterkids.org.
