Schools use fitness to educate about diabetes

(ARA) - Throughout the year, you are continuously overloaded with fundraising requests, whether they are from your children’s schools, your job or your friends. You may ask yourself: Which cookies should I buy? Do I need that holiday gift wrapping paper?

One fundraiser that won’t add on the pounds or get stuck in your closet is School Walk for Diabetes, an educational school fundraising program that promotes healthy living, school spirit and community involvement.

The money raised through School Walk for Diabetes helps to fund diabetes research, education and advocacy efforts in support of the American Diabetes Association’s mission.

While raising money for the American Diabetes Association, students learn about diabetes and the importance of making healthy choices including eating nutritious foods and exercising every day. It is never too early to start getting kids educated about this deadly disease, as nearly 24 million American children and adults in the U.S. have diabetes.

Jason Wall and Anton Pratt are two teachers that participate in School Walk for Diabetes, making it a friendly competition between their Arizona middle schools.

As physical education and health instructors in Phoenix's Litchfield School District, Wall and Pratt compete to raise the most money in the nation for School Walk for Diabetes. Wall, who has type 1 diabetes, teaches at Verrado Middle School, while Pratt teaches at Western Sky Middle School.

"Schools are always bombarded with fundraising requests from many worthwhile causes," Pratt said. "After seeing Jason constantly testing and injecting himself with insulin throughout the day and research showing an 800 percent increase in diagnosed cases within our very own district, I thought ‘How awesome would it be to be part of the cure?'"

Wall created some fun incentives: Any student who raised $100 can ask a teacher to be his or her waiter at lunch for a day. Another incentive was students can wear their own clothes to gym class instead of the school-issued physical education uniform. For every $50 raised, students receive a raffle chance to win an Xbox or Wii donated by Wall.

Their creative ideas and clever antics have helped the two teachers generate more than $71,000 since beginning their respective School Walks. This is an extremely generous amount of funding and also a huge way to raise awareness in their school district. Each year, about 15,000 youth ages 20 and under are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in the U.S. With Wall's personal story, he gives a face to the disease with his students, while showing the kids firsthand how they can touch the lives of people with diabetes.

Pratt is always trying to one up Wall. In his "Twenty Together" campaign, for every student who raised $20, he would "drop and give them 20 push-ups." Pratt did 4,680 push-ups in three days while raising $17,000. The top six fundraisers in each grade at Pratt's school are treated to time off school and a limo ride to the movies, courtesy of local business partners.

"We compete in absolutely everything to the very last breath, the very last whistle and the very last dollar," Pratt says. "But the greatest victory for both of us will be the one where our students have a day when they no longer have to worry about their diabetes. We'd be very happy to share that win."

To find out more information or to register your school for School Walk for Diabetes, call the American Diabetes Association at (888) DIABETES or visit: www.diabetes.org/schoolwalk.

Courtesy of ARAcontent