May 15, 2009
GOVERNOR PATERSON AND FIRST LADY MICHELLE PAIGE PATERSON CONGRATULATE WINNERS OF HEALTHY STEPS TO ALBANY: FIRST LADY’S CHALLENGE
More Than 100 Buffalo and Rochester Students Join Governor and First Lady for Nutritious Luncheon
One Day After Testifying on Healthy Steps Before Congress, First Lady Celebrates Its Success
Governor David A. Paterson and First Lady Michelle Paige Paterson today hosted an awards luncheon for the winners of Healthy Steps to Albany: First Lady’s Challenge. More than 100 students from the winning teams in Rochester and Buffalo joined the Governor and First Lady in Buffalo at the Emerson School of Hospitality. The nutritious luncheon included an awards ceremony and featured a dance routine that the students created to highlight their Healthy Steps success. Each winner also received a new pair of sneakers donated by Kids in Distressed Situations, Inc. (K.I.D.S.) to encourage students to continue their daily physical activities.
The luncheon follows just one day after the First Lady’s testimony before the House Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities, where she urged the federal government to adopt childhood-obesity programs like Healthy Steps.
“I want to congratulate all the students who took part in this challenge to make activity and good eating habits a way of life,” said First Lady Michelle Paige Paterson. “As a mother and health care professional, I am familiar with the threat that high-fat foods and inactivity pose to our children. At a time when one in four New Yorkers is obese, our records of increasing childhood obesity demand that we act now before we cannot act at all. By encouraging our children to exercise and eat well, we will help to ensure that they realize a safer, healthier and more prosperous future.”
“Healthy Steps to Albany tackles this epidemic at its root, by teaching our kids the importance of healthy eating and healthy living at an early age,” said Governor Paterson. “Obesity and its related illnesses harm our children, our future and ultimately cost the State billions of dollars in health care costs each year. If we can reach them while they are still young, we can instill good habits that will last a lifetime. I am proud of all the students who participated and I offer my congratulations to the winners of the First Lady’s Challenge.”
Last month, the First Lady announced the winners of the wellness initiative she developed to help fight childhood obesity in New York State. Nearly 270 class-teams from Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany and Yonkers logged more than 1.4 billion steps by the end of the program and competed for a host of prizes, including a healthy lunch with the Governor and First Lady.
Today’s celebration honored the following Buffalo and Rochester winners:
| City | School | Team | Grade | Teacher | Steps |
| Buffalo | North Park Middle Academy #66 | Team 201 | 6 | Julie Walker | 6,585,650 |
| Buffalo | Build Academy | Team 214 | 7 | Teresa Gibbs | 4,848,224 |
| Buffalo | Build Academy | Team 211 | 8 | Loretta Howard | 5,874,021 |
| Rochester | John H. Williams School #5 | Incardona’s Inventors | 6 | Paula Incardona | 36,435,289 |
| Rochester | East High School | Team Honors | 7 | Northrup Pegge | 22,703,434 |
The Governor and First Lady presented each winning class with a framed certificate of achievement. Students then led a performance created to demonstrate to both the First Lady and Governor how important Healthy Steps was to their health and wellness education.
The Emerson School of Hospitality, a public high school that blends academics, culinary arts and training for a career in the food industry, prepared the wholesome, balanced meal that included a mixed green salad, grilled chicken, baked tilapia, rice pilaf, and green beans. For dessert, frozen yogurt and sliced strawberries were served.
Healthy Steps to Albany: First Lady’s Challenge kicked-off in March and encouraged students in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades to make physical activity a part of their day. Class-teams logged their activities and used the Healthy Steps website to convert their various exercise into “steps,” following their progress on an interactive map of New York. The six-week program sought to educate children about healthy habits that included exercise and wholesome foods.
The Governor and First Lady will host a celebratory luncheon at the Executive Mansion to honor the Healthy Steps winners from Syracuse, Albany and Yonkers.
