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For Immediate Release:
August 01, 2011

Media Contact:
Laura Phillips
[email protected]
305-755-7842



Miami-Dade Parks summer camp participants getting Fit to Play with the help of U-Health mini clinics

Photo Opportunity

 


(Miami-Dade County, FL) -- 
Youth enrolled in the Miami-Dade Park and Recreation Department's 'Fit to Play, Green It Up' Summer Camps are learning how to develop a healthier lifestyle with the added bonus of five U-Health mini clinics which kicked off in July, courtesy of the University of Miami Health System (U-Health) and UM Miller School of Medicine, its partner sponsors.  On Tuesday, August 2, the final mini health clinic for this summer series will take place from 9 a.m.-2 p.m., at Goulds Park, 11350 SW 216 St., Miami, with more than 300 kids, ages 6-14, participating in health and wellness demonstrations and activities, that answer questions like how many steps it would take to walk off the calories from a chocolate bar and why you might get a sunburn in the shade.

The U-Health mini clinic consists of five health stations staffed by medical students from the UM School of Medicine, offering lessons on stress management, sun protection, staying fit with exercise, good nutrition, and tobacco prevention. To get started, participants will receive a U-Health nylon back-pack that contains a booklet with information on the heath stations that they will be visiting.  Each station will give away parting mementos, such as coloring books, crayons, stress balls and UV-sensitive beads that change color when exposed to ultra-violet light from the sun. The event includes prize drawings for other UM items.

Miami-Dade Parks' four prior U-Health mini clinics for its summer camps included Tamiami Park, Highland Oaks Park, the NFL Youth Education Town Center at Gwen Cherry Park, and Deerwood Park,

Miami-Dade Parks began its partnership with University of Miami Health System and UM Miller School of Medicine in 2008 to assist them in their efforts to help combat childhood obesity by providing these added health services for both its Out-Of-School and summer camp programs.  To date, Miami-Dade Parks has hosted a total of 27 U-Health mini clinic events.

About the Miami-Dade Park & Recreation Department:
Nationally accredited, a three-time winner of the NRPA National Gold Medal Award and winner of the 2009 Florida Governor's Sterling Award for excellence in management and operations, Miami-Dade Parks is the third largest county park system in the United States, consisting of 263 parks and more than 12,848 acres of land.  It is one of the most unique park and recreation systems in the world.  Made up of more than just playgrounds and athletic fields, it also comprises out-of-school, sports-development, and summer-camp programs; programs for seniors and people with disabilities; educational nature centers and nature preserves; environmental restoration efforts; arts and culture programs and events; the renowned Zoo Miami and the Deering Estate at Cutler; the Crandon Tennis Center, home of the Sony Ericsson Open; golf courses; beaches; marinas; campgrounds; pools; and more.  For information about Miami-Dade Parks call 3-1-1 or visit www.miamidade.gov/parks.


 
Who: University of Miami Health System, UM Miller School of Medicine and Miami-Dade Parks

What:U-Health Mini Health Clinic for Summer Campers

When: August 02, 2011, 9:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m.

Where:Goulds Park
11350 SW 216 Street
Miami

Why:


 

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PARK AND RECREATION
Hickman Building
275 N.-W 2nd Street, 5th Floor Miami, Florida 33128
(305) 755-7800