NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Titans kicker Ryan Succop has partnered as ambassador with The Dairy Alliance this year visiting students at Watertown Middle School in Wilson county to celebrate the continued commitment for youth health & wellness while encouraging students to 'Fuel Up' with healthy foods so they can be active for 60 minutes a day.
Fuel Up to Play 60 (FUTP60), the nation's largest in-school wellness program, which is a partnership between the National Football League (NFL) and the National Dairy Council (NDC), in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. FUTP60 empowers students to live active and healthy lifestyles by playing or exercising for at least 60 minutes each day and fueling up with healthy foods such as low-fat and fat-free dairy.
The NFL Fuel Up to Play 60 – Tennessee Titans Hometown Grant program, focuses on priority school districts in the Tennessee Titans market. Through the Hometown Grants program, deserving schools in the communities are identified to receive funding to help facilitate sustainable physical activity and healthy eating programs for students. Since 2014, the program has provided more than 700 schools nationwide with funds and resources, resulting in more than one million students staying physically active and making healthier food choices. The NFL has committed $10,000 to Fuel Up to Play 60 and the Titans are providing Watertown, Mt. Juliet and West Wilson Middle Schools the Home Town grant to improve access to healthy eating and physical activity initiates.
"Watertown Middle School was selected to receive the Hometown Grant," said Laura Marbury, MS, RDN, LD, manager of food and nutrition outreach with The Dairy Alliance. "This is provided through The Dairy Alliance partnership with the NFL, specifically with the Titans locally. It's a wonderful opportunity to provide grant funding to help the school kickoff the Fuel Up to Play 60 program."
"We are humbled to receive it and very excited!" said Kayla Price, principal of Watertown Middle School. "We have decided to designate part of the money towards nutrition and the other part to promote physical activity, because we know in order for students to participate in physical activity they must fuel up with nutrition. The grant will be used to add another mobile cart breakfast to help promote a healthy breakfast to more of our students."
"It's such a great way to give back to the community locally and work with kids to help impact their health, their school performance and make sure they have access to healthy foods and physical activity every day." said Marbury.
The NFL Play 60 campaign is designed to tackle childhood obesity by getting kids active through in school, afterschool and team-based programs. The Dairy Alliance and the Titans work together to help make wellness part of the game plan in Tennessee schools through the Play 60 campaign/Fuel Up to Play 60. The program encourages schools to make healthy changes in students' eating habits and physical activity.
"Being an ambassador for The Dairy Alliance is something I'm really proud of!" said Succop. "We encourage kids to get the healthy nutrition they need and a lot of that is from dairy products. Encouraging kids to live a healthy and active lifestyle is something I'm very passionate about and something I'm proud to be a part of."
I know for me, it's an important part of my life to make sure I'm eating healthy and making sure I'm getting exercise. I just feel better when I do those things and I want to encourage our youth enjoy living a healthy and active lifestyle."
Many schools lack the resources to execute school wellness and this is why The Dairy Alliance, on behalf of dairy farmer families, is proud to support schools in the fight for healthier kids with the opportunities for Fuel Up to Play 60 schools to write for grants to kick-off or enhance their wellness plan in their schools.
The funds from the Hometown Grants can be utilized by the receiving schools in many ways to optimize healthy eating and physical activity based on local needs and interests. This could range from vending machine wraps to support smart snacking, improving school breakfasts and summer feeding programs to physical activity equipment.
Fuel Up to Play 60 is an in-school nutrition and physical activity program launched by the National Dairy Council, the Southeast Dairy Association and the NFL. It's all about getting students to 'Fuel Up' with nutrient-rich foods missing from their diets, like low-fat and fat-free milk and milk products, fruits, vegetables and whole grains and to 'get-up and play' for 60 minutes a day. New research shows that better nutrition starting with breakfast, coupled with increased physical activity can lead to better academic achievement.
Whether you are a parent, educator or friend, you can have a positive influence and make a difference in a child's life by encouraging them to eat well and play for 60 minutes a day.
