By Michael S. Hoey
Correspondent
School has had a decidedly different look since mid-March. School buildings have been closed and all learning has been done virtually. But that didn’t stop students at Phoenix Middle School in Delavan from raising more than $1,000 for the American Heart Association recently.
Jessica Radloff is in her second year teaching Health and Physical Education at Phoenix. She taught in South Milwaukee before coming to Delavan. Radloff said the American Heart Association contacted her and other teachers at Phoenix about the annual heart challenge.
With school closed and learning taking place online, Radloff said she initially had reservations about the school participating. The fundraiser is designed to get kids engaged and active, which obviously could have been difficult to monitor with the kids at home.
Radloff said the Heart Association used the honor system and allowed the kids to sign up online this year. They were given three options for participation in the May 4-15 event: they could exercise for 60 minutes a day; commit to drinking water instead of sugary drinks, or; commit to saying “no” to vaping and tobacco.
In a move that may be surprising, Radloff said, exercise was the most popular choice followed by drinking water, and then saying no to vaping and tobacco.
“The focus is on being heart-healthy and maintaining fitness so they can be at their best,” Radloff said.
She said participating also teaches the kids to get into a routine and promote a lifestyle change. She said it can be very difficult for anyone, even adults, to learn to do something different and make those kind of changes.
In addition to participating, the kids received information about healthy lifestyles from the American Heart Association as well as some healthy recipes.
The program had two goals at Phoenix: raise $500 and get 250 kids to participate. While they fell short on the second goal, Radloff said they doubled the money goal and raised $1,082.
The kids were given an incentive to raise money. When they hit certain benchmarks, one of several staff members – in a rotation – got “slimed.” Radloff went first and others who volunteered, including varsity baseball coach Paul Yanko and principal Hank Schmelz, followed.
Radloff said despite her initial concerns the event was a success and was worth trying since there was no cost involved. Not only did the kids learn about healthy lifestyles but they raised money for a good cause.
