Health and Wellness Grant Awarded to Boys & Girls Club of Manchester

The Gamesroom is a place within a Boys & Girls Club where members are able to take part in a wide variety of games and activities and can socialize with their friends. It is the most utilized program area in the Boys & Girls Club and as a result take a lot of wear and tear.

The renovation of the new room is made possible locally through the support of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in New Hampshire, and includes areas where kids and teens can participate in educational activities that teach them social skills that enable them to relate to others effectively and how to contribute in positive ways to the culture around them.  

"We believe strongly that we have a responsibility to give back and support organizations that are working to foster healthy communities.  The Boys & Girls Club of Manchester is an amazing place where kids are getting educational support, physical activity and mentoring," said Lisa Guertin, president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield. "We're very excited about the new Gamesroom as it will go a long way in helping the Club meet the needs of today's kids."

While the Gamesroom is a flurry of activity, with a number of different games happening at the same time, it is positive environment where character development, teamwork and conflict-resolution lessons are occurring as part of the Club's Triple Play program.

Triple Play is Boys & Girls Clubs of America's signature health and wellness program focused on the mind, body and soul to teach kids and teens about living a healthy lifestyle. Since 2005, Triple Play has made connections with more than 10 million youth around the country.

"We must do everything possible to provide a state-of-the art environment where kids and teens can learn and develop the leadership and social skills needed to be great inside and outside of the Club. This new Gamesroom will help our Club members develop social and emotional wellbeing, a key component to achieving success in working with others and a great future," said Diane Fitzpatrick, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Manchester. "We're very excited about the improvements and we thank Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield for their commitment to our Boys & Girls Club and the Manchester community."

Social recreation is essential to the healthy development of children and teens. Through the Triple Play program, Boys & Girls Clubs are influencing the next generation of leaders who are socially and morally sound.

An evaluation conducted by Youth Development Strategies, Inc. in 2009 found that the Triple Play program has improved youth's interactions with peers at the Club. The study also proved that Triple Play helps both youth who start with good quality peer relationships and those who start with poor ones improve social interaction.

About Triple Play
Sponsored by The Anthem Foundation and The Coca-Cola Company, Triple Play is Boys & Girls Clubs of America's signature health and wellness program. Triple Play began in 2005 and focuses on nutrition and health education, access to healthy meals, and teaching youth how to commit to fitness as well as positive relationship building and self-confidence elements. Learn more about the program at www.bgca.org/tripleplay.  

About Boys & Girls Club of Manchester
The Manchester Boys Club was incorporated in 1907 and became the Boys & Girls Club of Manchester in 1983. We are one of the 53 original organizations that formed what is now Boys & Girls Clubs of America. From its meager beginnings as reading and recreation rooms, the Manchester Club has grown to include the main Clubhouse at 555 Union Street and two school-based after school sites at Jewett Street and Highland Goffe's Falls Elementary Schools with a focus on academic success, healthy lifestyles and character and leadership development. In addition, we operate Camp Foster summer day camp in Bedford, NH.  www.begreatmanchester.org.

About Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation
Through charitable grant making, the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation LLC, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, promotes Anthem's inherent commitment to enhance the health and well-being of individuals and families in communities that Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield serves. The Foundation focuses its funding on strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease states and medical conditions. These include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long term activities that decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company's Associate Giving program which provides a 50 percent match of associates' campaign pledges, as well as its Volunteer Time Off and Dollars for Doers community service programs.  ®ANTHEM is a registered trademark of Anthem Insurance Companies, Inc. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and symbols are registered marks of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

SOURCE Boys & Girls Clubs of America

Related Links

http://www.bgca.org