Recent Stories
April 19, 2015
Once again thousands of New Brunswick residents took to the streets for the Ciclovia event held on Sunday, April 19th. The free, citywide initiative closed the streets to cars and opened them to people to promote healthy active living, with more than 15 activity stations on a three-mile route. The event was sponsored by New Brunswick Tomorrow, the City of New Brunswick, Johnson & Johnson and Rutgers University. Volunteers from more than two dozen other community organizations, including NJPHK-New Brunswick also participated. As part of the event, residents could walk, run, bike or skateboard in the streets. There was also a pop-up skate park, a rock climbing wall, a Fun Bus, a bike rodeo, music and art activities, and group fitness classes, including yoga and Crossfit. In Spanish, Ciclovia means bike path. In Bogota, Colombia, where Ciclovia began, streets are closed every Sunday. Similar events are now held in more […]
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April 9, 2015
In 2013, New Jersey was one of six states that saw a slight increase in adult obesity. In addition, the state’s rate of obesity in toddlers residing in low-income communities is the second highest in the nation. New Jersey’s Healthy Corner Store Initiative is working to turn this around by making small, neighborhood retailers a part of the solution to obesity and diet-related disease. The initiative links community partners with corner store owners to help stores stock, market and sell healthy, affordable food to their customers. The statewide initiative is being led by the American Heart Association, New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids and The Food Trust, with support from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “Far too many New Jerseyans live in communities where there are no well-stocked grocery or convenience stores in their neighborhoods, leaving them unable to make healthy food choices,” says Corinne Orlando, director of Government Relations […]
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April 6, 2015
Originally published in CourierPostOnline Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Camden, and Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt, D-Camden/Burlington, visited Camden’s Fayer’s Market Thursday, part of a tour to showcase efforts some corner stores are making to increase access to affordable, healthy food. The New Jersey Healthy Corner Store Initiative is a statewide program focused on increasing the availability of healthy, affordable food in local stores and bodegas. Currently, there are 80 corner stores participating in the initiative and the goal is to expand to approximately 150 corner stores in underserved New Jersey communities by year-end. Fayer’s Market currently participates in the New Jersey Healthy Corner Store Initiative and was one of the first stores that participated in the Camden Healthy Corner Store Network, a program funded by Campbell Soup Company’s Healthy Communities program. In 2013, New Jersey was one of six states that saw a slight increase in adult obesity, and the state’s rate of […]
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April 2, 2015
The New Jersey Healthy Corner Store Initiative announced today that it hosted Assemblyman Lou Greenwald, Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt and other community leaders on a site visit at Camden’s Fayer’s Market (1400 Haddon Ave) on April 2. The tour showcased the positive impact healthy corner stores are making to increase people’s access to affordable, healthy food, as well as bolster economic development efforts by capturing dollars that would otherwise be spent outside of the community. The New Jersey Healthy Corner Store Initiative is a statewide program focused on increasing the availability and sales of healthy, affordable food in local stores and bodegas. Currently, there are 80 corner stores participating in the initiative and the goal is to expand to approximately 150 corner stores in underserved New Jersey communities by yearend. Fayer’s Market currently participates in the New Jersey Healthy Corner Store Initiative and was one of the first stores that participated […]
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March 24, 2015
On March 24, 2015, Darrin Anderson, PhD, deputy director of the New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids (NJPHK), participated as a panelist in the New Jersey Learning Connection Forum. The Forum, sponsored by the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council, focused on key initiatives, including bullying prevention, school nutrition and physical activity. In addition to Anderson, the panel included Dr. Anthony Dragona, business administrator, Union City Schools; Dr. Marguerite Lueze, Newark School medical director and Tonya Riggins, school nutrition director, Newark Schools. The panel addressed the topic of physical activity and its importance in the lives of New Jersey youth. Anderson’s expertise in this area helped bring to light the positive impact exercise has in the lives of students, acting as a means to improve academic performance, behavior and overall quality of life. The panelists also discussed the significance of implementing healthy practices and effective policies in the school system […]
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March 4, 2015
March 2-6 is National School Breakfast Week—a five day celebration of the school breakfast program and a way to underscore the importance of breakfast to a student’s overall health and learning ability. Research shows that eating breakfast correlates with improvements in students’ academic achievement in vocabulary, math and on standardized tests. Further, children who eat a healthy breakfast are less likely to be truant or late for school. And these children are less likely to be overweight or obese. During this week, schools will be promoting the benefits of eating a healthy breakfast. Help spread the word to students and their families that the school breakfast program is an important step towards good health and good grades. SHARE:
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March 4, 2015
New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids’ (NJPHK) systemic approach to healthy living through access to healthy food, school wellness and physical activity is providing a roadmap for YMCAs. Vicky Williams, senior program director of the Frost Valley YMCA Camp, conferred with NJPHK Deputy Director Darrin Anderson when Frost Valley was seeking –and later won — a $50,000 grant from the National Recreation Foundation. The grant enabled Frost Valley to pilot a wellness initiative, focused on nutrition and physical activity, at its camp in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Shannon O’Connor, food access coordinator at NJPHK-Trenton, took a sabbatical from NJPHK to spend three months at Frost Valley. She implemented the wellness summer curriculum and helped the YMCA transition into its fall education program by training instructors to run healthy cooking classes. The program went so well that Frost Valley received a two-year grant, with 75 percent more funding, to […]
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March 4, 2015
Through its 7th Grade Initiative, the YMCA provides membership to interested 7th graders for a year. It’s a chance for 7th graders to benefit from YMCA programming at a critical time in a young person’s life. Thomas Galuppo, Director of Healthy Living at the Gateway Family YMCA Five Points Branch in Union, NJ, recently shared a story about the impact of the 7th Grade Initiative on the life of one young man. Galuppo met 7th grader Kenny Noncent, when he visited Kawameeh Middle School to talk about the 7th Grade Initiative. After the talk, Kenny came to the Y with his mother and enrolled in the program. His mother said she wanted Kenny to get out more and not just sit around the house. It worked — Kenny became a very familiar face at The Five Points Branch. Kenny grew to love basketball and would shoot nonstop. Through the Y’s […]
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March 4, 2015
The Trenton Board of Education passed the District Wellness Policy on January 20, 2015. This critical achievement is the culmination of many months of research, hard work and collaboration on the part of the Board of Education, NJPHK-Trenton staff and partners and wellness champions in the Trenton schools. Marissa Davis, NJPHK-Trenton project manager said, “This is a step in the right direction, but by no means is the work over. Awareness, implementation and monitoring are in order to truly bring a culture of health and wellness to Trenton’s students and district staff. I am very excited to have the support of the Trenton Board of Education and that of the Family and Community Engagement department as we move this policy forward.” The wellness policy addresses nutrition and physical activity and applies to all Trenton public schools. The policy provides guidelines governing the nutritional quality of foods and beverages sold and […]
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March 4, 2015
In December, Dr. Nwando Anyaoku, co-director of New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids-Newark (NJPHK-N), started a new chapter of her life as medical director for Pediatric Medicine CHI Health System Alegent Creighton Clinic in Omaha, Nebraska. In her new role, Dr. Anyaoku will develop and direct a network of pediatric primary care and urgent care centers across the Omaha metropolitan area. “She was a tireless champion for the prevention of childhood obesity in Newark,” said Courtney Price, NJPHK-N project manager. “We are happy for her new venture, but she will be missed.” Dr. A, as she is known, was director of General Pediatrics at Children’s Hospital/Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. She signed on as co-director of NJPHK-N in 2009 attracted by the Robert Wood Johnson philosophy of focusing on policy and environmental change. In that capacity, she spearheaded Let’s Move! in the Clinic, leading training sessions for clinics, practices and […]
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