For immediate release
May 3, 2006 |
Contact: Adolfo Pando
(408) 453-6687
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Want to Get a Kick Out of Little Kids?
Head Start Launches Soccer League
About 500 Tots Signed Up to Play in New League
SAN JOSE, CA – Hoping to introduce kids early on to the value of exercise,
as well as involve parents in their children's activities, Head Start on
Saturday (May 6) will launch a new soccer league for children it serves in Santa
Clara and San Benito Counties. The participants will range in age from 3 to 5.
To the surprise of Head Start organizers, the 500 students who were signed up
for the league was about five times as many as had been expected.
"We struggle to get parent involvement in the classrooms, but with this
event, we hit the jackpot," said Ana M. Trujillo, director of Children's
Services at the Santa Clara County Office of Education. The SCCOE receives
federal funds to provide Head Start services.
League play will begin Saturday at venues in San Jose, Gilroy and Hollister.
Representatives from the San Jose Sharks Foundation, which contributed $20,000
to the soccer effort, will be on hand for a short presentation at 10 a.m. at the
San Jose site, at MACSA, 660 Sinclair Dr.
The games are scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday and run until 2:15
p.m.
The league addresses two goals of Head Start: to get children physically
active, and to involve parents in their children's activities. Most of the
coaching, officiating and organizing is being done by volunteers, said Adolfo
Pando of Head Start. More volunteers are being sought. Contact Pando for
details.
Childhood obesity is a growing concern in California, as are the chronic
diseases that stem from it. California children are not getting the nutrition
and physical activity they need to maintain good health
"It's so important to get them started with healthy experiences when they
are young," Trujillo said. "This will help set the foundation for a
healthy future."
Date last updated: May 3, 2006
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