Ambuehl School Participates in Kids Run the OC

By Curt Visca Seventy kindergarten through 5th grade Ambuehl students participated in the Kids Run The OC training program during the 2012-13 school year, which was designed to help children become more physically fit, promote an active and healthy lifestyle, and combat the onset of childhood obesity -- while having fun! This was accomplished through various running activities, which helped improve speed, agility, hand/eye coordination, flexibility and children’s overall fitness. Before beginning the training program, families reviewed and signed a Kids Run the OC Pledge Page with rules and expectations for the program and their child in order to ensure their safety and the safety of others. Families made a pledge to make their health and fitness a priority by arriving on time and coming prepared, working as a team and being an A.O.K. Ambuehl Eagle, having fun, signing in and out for attendance, and practicing proper safety procedures while running. This was the first year that Ambuehl participated in the Kids Run the OC program. Ambuehl students were led by OC Marathon certified coach volunteers Kim Weirath (kindergarten teacher), Cori Armstrong (parent), and Cherise Matthews (parent) through a fun ten-week training program. “Combining physical fitness and nutrition, families worked together to set their own goals and to change habits for a better lifestyle. Some families replaced drinking sodas with water, while other families started exercising together,” said Armstrong. By the end of Ambuehl’s training program, each student accumulated the equivalent of 25.2 miles of fun physical activities, such as running and doing calisthenics, and were ready to finish their own Marathon by completing their final mile at the Kids Run the OC on May 4 at the Orange County Fairgrounds. Many parents also trained with their children at Ambuehl School. Staff members, such as principal Curt Visca, also participated in some of the trainings. “Students kept track of their times and one-mile pace when training in order to set goals for themselves,” said Matthews. Ambuehl School Kids Run the OC volunteers, along with other Orange County school Kids Run the OC volunteers, were honored at the Orange County Department of Education on May 21 at a Celebrating Kids Run the OC ceremony. “The Celebrating Kids Run the OC ceremony was a wonderful culminating event and I’m very happy that Ambuehl students and parents were able to participate in the Kids Run the OC program. We have already made plans to have Ambuehl participate in Kids Run the OC during the 2013-14 school year,” said Weirath.