Kohl's Department Stores, Betty Brinn Children's Museum and Children's Hospital and Health System Open New Exhibit Feb. 27

MILWAUKEE, Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Eat your greens, buckle up, brush your teeth and go forward. There's a fun, new way to encourage kids to wash their hands and eat their veggies thanks to a generous $725,000 donation from Kohl's Department Stores' Kohl's Cares for Kids® cause merchandise program, which donates 100 percent of the net profit to benefit children's health and education initiatives nationwide. The donation funds two programs - a new exhibit, opening Saturday, Feb. 27 at the Betty Brinn Children's Museum done in partnership with Children's Hospital and Health System and a related community outreach program run by the hospital.

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"Kohl's continues to strive to make a positive difference through our Kohl's Cares for Kids platform across the country and in our hometown, and we are pleased to partner with two prominent Milwaukee-area organizations to benefit the collective community," said Julie Gardner, Kohl's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "Kohl's, Children's Hospital and Health System and the Betty Brinn Children's Museum are all focused on teaching local kids the importance of health and safety. By teaming together, we've pooled our strengths to help accomplish greater things for area kids and families."

The hands-on exhibit, where kids can enter into a giant board game and learn the good and the bad of health-related decisions, is part of the Kohl's Healthy Kids initiative, which includes the new Kohl's Healthy Kids: It's Your Move! exhibit at the Museum and the Kohl's Healthy Kids: Children's Health Education Center Outreach Program. The program helps address major health issues facing today's youth, including; childhood obesity - which affects 16 percent of U.S. children, tripling since 1980*; and accidental injuries – the leading cause of death for Wisconsin children**.

The 2,000-square-foot exhibit immerses visitors in a huge, interactive game board that features health-themed challenges and physical activities designed to help children learn about nutrition, activity and rest, safety and personal care. Using oversized spinners and game cards, children advance along the exhibit's colorful game path moving forward or backward as a result of each activity.

"Thanks to the generosity of Kohl's and our continuing partnership with Children's Hospital and Health System, we are able to provide preschoolers and older children alike with fun and engaging ways to explore the elements of healthy living, and help caregivers reinforce with children the importance of making good health-related choices," said Carolyn Rydlewicz, associate director of educational programs, Betty Brinn Children's Museum.

Educational programs for families and school or community groups will be available at the Museum to complement the exhibit. Starting in June, the exhibit's messages will reach children and adults throughout the Fox Valley and Milwaukee area through the Kohl's Healthy Kids: Children's Health Education Center Outreach Program. Two mobile displays will appear at community events and large venues.

"Kohl's has been a generous, collaborative partner for 10 years, and we are thrilled with this latest program," said Bridget Clementi, executive director, Children's Health Education Center. "By taking our show on the road, we will be able to introduce even more families to healthy living habits. The mobile exhibit will feature fun giveaways and educational tools for caregivers and kids to use in their own homes."

The Kohl's Healthy Kids: It's Your Move! exhibit and the Kohl's Healthy Kids: Children's Health Education Center Outreach Program are made possible through a $725,000 donation from the Kohl's Cares for Kids program. The exhibit will be at the Betty Brinn Children's Museum for the next five years. The Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, noon to 5 p.m. Sundays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays (June through August). The Kohl's Healthy Kids: It's Your Move! exhibit is free with regular admission. Admission is $6 per person and $5 per senior (adults older than 55); children younger than one are free. For more information, call 414-390-KIDS (5437) or visit www.bbcmkids.org.

Through Kohl's Cares for Kids, Kohl's contributes time, effort and funding toward improving the health and safety of children. Created in 2000, the program has raised more than $126 million to support children's health and education initiatives nationwide. Locally, Kohl's has raised more than $5.2 million for Children's Hospital and Health System.  

Since 2000, Kohl's and the Kohl's Cares for Kids program have combined to give approximately $27 million to support charitable initiatives in the metro-Milwaukee area, including the following recent contributions:

• $7 million donation over the next three years to the Milwaukee Affiliate of Susan G. Komen and the American Cancer Society's Midwest division
• $3 million donation over the next three years to Junior Achievement of Wisconsin
• $1 million donation over the next three years to Penfield Children's Center  
• $225,000 to Hunger Task Force
• $1 million donation to the Milwaukee Art Museum

About the Betty Brinn Children's Museum

The Betty Brinn Children's Museum is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational resources that promote the healthy development of children in their formative years – from birth to age 10. The Museum's mission is supported by the development of age-appropriate, hands-on exhibits and programs for children, and adult education programs that focus on early childhood brain development, learning styles, parenting skills and how the Museum environment can be used to promote a young child's cognitive, emotional, social and physical growth. The Museum is considered one of the best facilities of its kind in the nation and is among Milwaukee's most popular and respected educational resources.

About Children's Hospital and Health System

Children's Hospital and Health System is the region's only independent health care system dedicated solely to the health and well-being of children. Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, the health system's flagship member, is recognized as one of the leading pediatric health care centers in the United States, rated No. 3 in the nation by Parents magazine and named one of America's Best Children's Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report. Other health system entities include Children's Hospital of Wisconsin-Fox Valley, Children's Hospital and Health System Foundation, Children's Health Education Center, Children's Medical Group, Children's Physician Group, Children's Specialty Group, Surgicenter of Greater Milwaukee, Children's Service Society of Wisconsin, Children's Research Institute, Children's Community Health Plan, Seeger Health Resources and National Outcomes Center. In 2008, the health system invested more than $114 million back into the community to improve the health status of children through medical care, advocacy, education and pediatric medical research. For more information visit the Web site at www.chw.org.

About Kohl's Department Stores

Based in Menomonee Falls, Wis., Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) is a family-focused, value-oriented specialty department store offering moderately priced, exclusive and national brand apparel, shoes, accessories, beauty and home products in an exciting shopping environment. Kohl's operates 1,059 stores in 49 states. A company committed to the communities it serves, Kohl's has raised more than $126 million for children's initiatives nationwide through its Kohl's Cares for Kids® philanthropic program, which operates under Kohl's Cares, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kohl's Department Stores, Inc. For a list of store locations and information, or for the added convenience of shopping online, visit www.kohls.com.

* Obesity: Halting the Epidemic by Making Health Easier, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009.

** Burden of Injury in Wisconsin Report, Children's Alliance of Wisconsin, 2004.

SOURCE Kohl's Department Stores