By Dorie Morales -
Last weekend, I was thankful to be invited to the first annual Food and Fitness Challenge Campaign. The city of Phoenix, Phoenix Union High School District (PUHSD) and the Mollen Foundation are working together on a health-related campaign to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and promote physical activity among youth. Students from three schools in the PUHSD participated in the event.
Participants engaged in physical activities organized by the FitPHX program and demonstrated their knowledge about healthy eating habits. The challenge included an obstacle course where the kids learned which fruits and vegetables are healthiest, carried 25 pounds of sugar in a wheelbarrow to represent how much sugar average Americans eat per year, had a hula hoop contest and sac bag race, then prepared a healthy salad. The winners of the challenge received prizes ranging from $1,000 to $2,500 in grant money. They will use the money for healthy eating and activity programs for students.
Last year, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America awarded Phoenix’s Office of Sustainability a $25,000 grant to help achieve its Local Food System 2050 Sustainability Goal of increasing food access and significantly reducing diet-related diseases in the community.
At the end of the contest, Phoenix restaurant Gallo Blanco made and donated a huge vegan paella dish for everyone. I met chef owner Doug Robson, who said that he enjoyed Green Living magazine. He mentioned our magazine being in business for 12 years or so. I reminded him that we are only in our eighth year! How exciting to think that change agents such as Robson think we have been in business longer than we have.
As we celebrate our eighth year of business, we have exciting news to share at Green Living magazine. Dolores Tropiano has joined the staff as our new managing editor. Dolores was a reporter for the Arizona Republic for two decades covering visual, performing and public art, celebrities, society, and more while hosting and producing an Emmy Award-winning TV show. Most recently she has freelanced and worked as a publicist in the community. In her new role, Dolores will lead coverage in Arizona and the broader topical issues that are important to our magazine and digital customers close to home and around the world. She’ll directly supervise our copy editor and writers and work in close partnership with other leaders in the sustainability industry, sales and other departments.
Please welcome Dolores to our Green Team. You can call her at 480-840-1589 or email her at editor@greenlivingaz.com. She loves to hear from our readers, subscribers, social media fans and partners. Please let us know what is springing up in terms of healthy foods and activities in your world.
