PRESS RELEASE

May 12, 2010

Puppets Awarded $15,000 Grant from 

Health Foundation of South Florida 

Miami Gardens, FL--- MicheLee Puppets, Inc. has received a $15,000 grant from Health Foundation of South Florida in support of EXTREME Health Challenge in 45 Broward and Dade elementary schools, teaching children how to make positive choices about nutrition and physical activity.  

EXTREME Health Challenge is a 45-minute live theatrical production using wacky and entertaining puppet characters to teach through a series of challenges, battles of wit, audience participation, and puppetry mayhem, as students laugh and learn about the importance of good nutrition and active lifestyles in an entertaining and interactive game show format.  

The crisis of childhood obesity has grabbed national headlines, especially with the recent Let’s Move campaign initiated by First Lady Michelle Obama.  The consequences of obesity to the individual include health problems such as diabetes, heart disease, lower quality of life, and shorter lifespan.  The American Diabetes Association reports that healthcare costs associated with type 2 diabetes, commonly associated with obesity, with no major complications range from $1,700-$4,600 annually.  Annual costs for individuals with complications such as stroke, amputation, or end-stage renal disease range from $25,000-$63,100! The solution to the epidemic rise in obesity and childhood obesity in particular are prevention programs that promote nutrition and an active lifestyle. 

"We can do something to stop the obesity trend through prevention and education.   The grant from Health Foundation of South Florida will enable EXTREME Health Challenge to educate children and their families about how to create healthy habits for a lifetime," stated Tracey Conner, Executive Director of MicheLee Puppets.

Tracey Conner accepted the $15,000 check from  Shari Gantman, Vice President of Communications and Gabrielle Solomon, Research Program Associate at Health Foundation of South Florida   at a performance of EXTREME Health Challenge at Carol City Elementary School in Miami Gardens.

Health Foundation of South Florida, a nonprofit grant making organization, is dedicated to improving health in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties. By funding providers and supporting programs to promote health and prevent disease, the Foundation makes a measurable and sustainable impact in the health of individuals and families. Since 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $84 million in grants and program support. For more information, please call 305.374.7200 or visit the Web site, www.hfsf.org

MicheLee Puppets, Florida’s premier puppetry arts company, was founded in 1985.  Committed to serving the children of Florida by empowering lives through the art of puppetry, MicheLee Puppets brings exciting, educational and entertaining issue-based productions to more than 100,000 young people each year. Topics address the critical and challenging issues students face today including bullying, domestic violence, environmental conservation, healthy lifestyles, and sexual assault.  Through gripping performances young people learn respect, personal responsibility, and how to make positive life choices.

Now in its 25th season, MicheLee Puppets has served more than 1.6 million Florida students with school and community presentations.  The ability to effectively communicate difficult messages in a compelling and nonthreatening way has lead to national recognition by the Puppeteers of America, bestowing MicheLee Puppets with the Marjorie Batchelder McPharlin Award for Excellence in Educational Puppetry, and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant for their statewide production of EXTREME Health Challenge.

###

Click here to check out our videos!