On Wednesday, April 20, the San Francisco 49ers, in collaboration with the Junior League of Palo Alto•Mid-Peninsula, will be demonstrating healthy cooking and the importance of physical fitness during the Kids in the Kitchen event at the 49ers Academy from 3-6 p.m. 49ers owner Dr. John York and his daughters, Jenna and Mara York, along with 49ers alumni, will be in attendance to assist with a football camp and cooking demonstrations.
"Part of our mission is to help youth understand the need for living a healthy lifestyle and being active for at least 60 minutes a day, as part of the NFL's Play60 program," said 49ers Director of Community Relations and 49ers Foundation Joanne Pasternack. "Kids in the Kitchen is a great way to show youth how to not only be health conscious but also to provide them with physical activities they can do daily."
The alumni will be serving as coaches for a Gatorade Junior Training Camp and Jenna and Mara York will serve as "sous chefs" for the cooking demonstrations with Alessandro Cartumini from the Four Seasons Hotel in East Palo Alto.
The event will include classroom activities for elementary school aged students and cooking demonstrations for middle school students (3:15-4:15 p.m.), a 49ers Junior Gatorade Camp (3:15-4:15 p.m.) and cooking demonstrations for parents from Alessandro and the Yorks (4:30-5:30 p.m.). The event will conclude with the awarding of raffle prizes including fitness and nutrition themed baskets and more. Each child will also receive a 49ers reusable shopping bag filled with healthy snacks and other goodies.
The goal of the Kids in the Kitchen initiative, which is supported by The Association of Junior Leagues International Inc. and its member Leagues, is to empower youth to make healthy lifestyle choices and help reverse the growth of childhood obesity and its associated health issues.
"Maintaining an active, healthy lifestyle is extremely important for today's youth," said Stefanie Bruggeman, president, Junior League of Palo Alto•Mid-Peninsula. "By partnering with the San Francisco 49ers, the Junior League is able to further promote the development, confidence and growth of these children through healthy eating and cooking, as well as physical fitness."
The event will host approximately 200 youth from both the 49ers Academy and Costano Elementary School, which shares the campus and mission of the 49ers Academy. The 49ers Academy was founded in 1996 to serve 6th, 7th and 8th grade students from East Palo Alto. Defined by educational excellence, the 49ers Academy maximizes the potential of every student by emphasizing self-discipline, respect, and individualized academic attention to help them master core subjects and prepare for high school.
About the Junior League of Palo Alto•Mid PeninsulaThe Junior League of Palo Alto•Mid Peninsula, Inc. (JLPA•MP) focuses on developing the potential of families through its projects, community grants and public policy advocacy. The JLPA•MP focuses on training a diverse group of women volunteers, with a goal of serving those interested in developing their leadership potential, broadening their skills and effecting positive change in our community. The JLPA•MP serves the San Francisco Bay Area Peninsula. For more information please visit http://www.thejuniorleague.org/paloalto.
The JLPA•MP is a part of the Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI), which consists of 294 member Leagues and more than 170,000 members from the USA, Mexico, Canada and Great Britain. For more information, please go to AJLI's website at www.ajli.org.
