Annual Interactive Health Fair provides excitement, fun

Photo By Chuck Cannon | CYS staff members dress up as a skeleton and a milk cow to teach kids the importance of drinking milk for healthy bones.  

FORT POLK, LOUISIANA, UNITED STATES

03.01.2019

Story by Chuck Cannon 

Fort Johnson Public Affairs Office

By ANGIE THORNE
Guardian staff writer

FORT POLK, La. — The annual Child and Youth Service Interactive Health Fair, hosted by Fort Polk’s CYS Sports and Fitness program, was filled with characters, color and creativity that encouraged kids to engage and absorb everything the event could teach them. The fair was held at the Siegfried Youth Center Gym Feb. 22 from 3-6 p.m.
Jennifer Mallon, Youth Sports program associate, said the folks at Youth Sports care about Fort Polk Families and want to give them what they need to be healthy and happy.
She said one example of this is the bike used to demonstrate how electricity is conducted. Mallon said Youth Sports requested 46th Engineer Battalion’s 1st Lt. Heath Coles to help them build the bike. He and the Soldiers of the 687th Horizontal Engineer Company came through.
“They built the bike for us and it has been a big hit with the kids,” she said.
Mallon said she enjoys seeing the expressions on kid’s faces as they learn new things at the fair.
“They get excited. We have everything from environmental here with snakes and spiders to Dental Health explaining the best way to keep teeth healthy and more,” she said.
Mallon said participating vendors are asked to be interactive with the kids, whether that means taking pictures with people dressed as bumble bees and cows or learning the importance of cleaning your hands.
“This isn’t just about lecturing them. I think participation helps kids learn and maintain what we are trying to teach them. No matter their age or learning style, we have it covered,” she said.
The annual event is something Mallon said Youth Sports is proud to promote.
“The fair takes months of hard work and preparation and I’m so excited it is a success,” she said.
Jodi Fowler, Youth Sports assistant director, said she is thankful for the vendors and what they to make the event a success each year. “We couldn’t do this without them. The vendors are Fort Polk resources for Soldiers and Families. They take part in the fair to share their information with the Fort Polk community. They do it with a lot of energy and are great with the kids,” she said.
David Broyles, Fort Polk Directorate of Public Works energy manager, took part in the fair at the booth set up to demonstrate electricity. As part of his setup, Broyles had the bike that was built for the fair. The bike was built into a wooden frame and attached to a generator. A wire ran from the generator to a set of light bulbs. When kids got on the bike and began to pedal, they generated enough energy to light the bulbs. He said the bike demonstrated the basis of electricity by showing kids how electricity is conducted.
“This fair is all about helping kids learn. What I’m doing is teaching them about energy and energy conservation while they are young. What they learn now will stay with them for the rest of their lives, especially with a demonstration like this that is fun and makes a direct connection between the bike, the physical motion of their pedaling and creating electricity,” said Broyles.
Carolyn Willis, a CYS employee, said she volunteered to paint milk mustaches on kids at the CYS healthy milk and bones booth. She said she thinks this annual fair is vital for the military community.
“I feel we owe it to Families and children to help teach them about being healthy. I think it’s our responsibility to host events that educate, as well as enhance their lives,” she said.
Kyleon Williams, 8, said he enjoyed the health fair. Williams was part of a group of students from the School Age Center attending the fair.
“It’s really interesting and I’m looking forward to riding the bike that makes electricity,” he said.
Izabell Tippit, 9, also part of the School Age Center group, said she liked the exercise booth the best but she said that was because her mom worked at that one.
Tippit said she was also interested in the vendors that focused on the environment. “I like dirt. It’s fun. I’m in a gardening club,” she said. “The fair is great because I like to learn new things.”
Carolette Wright, a Fort Polk parent, said she brought her sons Malachi, 11, and Jude, 8, to the fair for a couple of reasons.
“I think it’s a great place for them to interact with other kids and adults while learning new things, she said. “We have also been trying to live healthier lives, so we thought we would see what we could discover at the health fair.”

• Date Taken: 03.01.2019
• Date Posted: 03.01.2019 14:13
• Story ID: 312535
• Location: FORT POLK, LOUISIANA, US