Joy of Play and Activity Comes Easily to Youth

Mountain View, CA – Running around playing is part of being a child. It comes as naturally to kids as breathing. Add to this the longer sunlit days of summer and one thing is certain: the coming months will see an increase in outdoor youth sports.

"Physical activity is being shown to be the closest thing we have to the 'Fountain of Youth' at this time," said George Ting, M.D., chair of the El Camino Healthcare District board of directors. "It is proven by good research to maintain health with improved cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and neuropsychiatric function, decrease Alzheimer's disease, and is associated with a longer and healthier life."

To help promote physical activity, this year the El Camino Healthcare District allocated $421,000 in Community Benefit grants to seven programs that engage youth in fitness.

"Since children are naturally and irrepressibly active, this is the best time to teach them how important physical activity is, and to encourage and support lifelong exercise programs," Ting said. "Teaching them to continue doing what they enjoy may help them maintain their long-term well-being more than anything else."

Two of the programs funded by the district are run by the Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative, known as BAWSI and pronounced "bossy."

BAWSI provides teambuilding, mentoring and a light sports touch through its programs at two Sunnyvale elementary schools. According to the Women's Sports Foundation, girls who are active in youth grow up to lead healthier lives and have a more positive self-image and stronger familial relationships.

"Overall, BAWSI is about improving health and gaining confidence on and off the fields and courts – developing as a leader," said Dana Weintraub, co-CEO of BAWSI and a pediatrician at Stanford Medicine Children's Health. "BAWSI participants learn about teamwork, communication and resiliency -- lessons that translate beyond the BAWSI playgrounds -- all while having fun and being physically active."

For eight weeks in the Spring and Fall, children learn the meaning of empowering words, work together in teams to solve problems, play games, cooperate, and compete. In this way they build self-confidence, improve their abilities, and develop a love for physical activity.

While the focus is on girls, BAWSI also has a co-ed program for children with physical, cognitive, and hearing disabilities. Most of the children participating in BAWSI's programs come from ethnically diverse communities and are considered socioeconomically disadvantaged.

"Girls from under-resourced neighborhoods and children with disabilities have fewer opportunities to play sports than other children. BAWSI is a simple solution to promote health and leadership. It is powerful to see how early on the El Camino Healthcare District understood the impact of our programs on child health," Weintraub said.

"Last week a principal at a school we're in overheard one young girl saying, 'I'm going to be a CEO because I am BAWSI.' I love just that."

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