YMCA’s Healthy Kids Day

On April 21, the California Highway Patrol’s chipmunk mascot, Chipper, helped to donate toys to families affected by the recent fires and mudslides at the Montecito YMCA. 

Spin Master toy company donated 12.5 pallets of toys to the California Highway Patrol. Chipper passed out toys and greeted kids at the event, which is a national YMCA initiative to educate families in the community about ways to promote children’s health and wellness over the summer. Activities included opportunities for camp registration, a bounce house, healthy snacks, live music, skating, relay races, a STEM project, and face painting. 

Captain Cindy Pontes of the California Highway Patrol said, “We chose to partner with the YMCA for this event because they were such great partners for the schools in the area during the disaster. They provided after-school care for the students at their off-site locations when they were under mandatory evacuations. The YMCA allowed parents to continue working with the comfort of knowing their children were safe in the care of the familiar staff from their YMCA after-school program. The YMCA helped bring comfort and a sense of normalcy back to the community during this difficult time.” The remaining toys will be donated to organizations across the Central Coast such as the YMCA, Children’s Resource Network, and The Dream Foundation. 

Healthy Kids Day is celebrated at more than 1,500 YMCAs across the country by 1.2 million participants, working to get more kids moving and learning, creating habits that they continue all summer long. When kids are out of school, they can face hurdles that prevent them from reaching their full potential. Research shows that without access to out-of-school learning activities, kids fall behind academically. Kids also gain weight twice as fast during summer than the school year.