Sarah Gaete flashed her rainbow-colored wristband to a class of parents, children and educators as a reminder that adding a few greens, oranges and blueberries can make a difference in one’s diet.

“It’s not about what we can’t do,” Gaete said about healthier eating, “it’s about what we can do.”

Gaete, a registered dietician with the Riverside County Department of Public Health, led the Riverside County Champions Train the Trainers program on Tuesday at Vista Dunes Courtyard Homes in La Quinta.

Tuesday’s training was the last segment of a two-hour, two-day program funded by Community Action Partnership.

The program aims to teach parents, children and leaders of such organizations as the local YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs about ways to eat better without breaking the bank.

“Making healthy choices is tough when you can go to McDonald’s and eat off their dollar menu,” said Paula Simonds, community program director of Family YMCA of the Desert. “But this is the first step in this community.”

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MADISON COUNTY, AL – Teachers at Discovery Middle School came up with a creative way to help students cope with the tragic shooting that happened at the school almost two months ago, and it’s turning out to be a hit with the middle schoolers. Students across the campus are sporting black rubber bracelets with the words “no regrets” printed on them. It’s sparking a lot of new discussion in the hallways.

The idea behind the bracelets is to encourage students to cope with the tragic shooting that happened nearly two months ago by going forward with no regrets.

“I can look at the bracelet and say, yeah, this happened at our school and this happened to people’s families and other people we know about, but I know I can still go on with my day and live life,” said Natalie Thompson, a ninth grader.
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Nationwide campaign seeks to end use of the ‘r-word’

By Joann Groff

Simi Valley students have pledged to discontinue the use of a derogatory word.March 3 marked the Ventura County Special Olympics’ second annual “Spread the Word to End the Word” day of awareness, a campaign to encourage everyone to stop using the word “retard(ed).”

Two Key clubs, at Royal and Simi Valley high schools, have committed to the cause and sold Tshirts and wristbands to raise money for the Special Olympics while talking to their peers about the hurtful effects of using the word.

Simi Valley High’s Key Club has more than 170 members. They were out in full force last week selling “End the R-word” gear.

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If a young boy or girl does you a special favour this week, then passes you a red wristband, don’t be surprised if they ask you to spread the kindness with a good turn of your own.

It’s part of a week-long initiative by Scouts Canada, the national organization of Beavers, Wolf Cubs, Scouts, Venturers and Rovers, to create a wave of goodness across the country.

For more than 100 years, everyone in the largest youth movement in the world has made a solemn promise to “do a good turn for somebody every day.” It is part of their creed to help other people.

This week, each of the almost 100,000 Canadians registered in Scouting has been given a rubber wristband to wear with the slogan “Pass on this good turn.”

If you thank them for a good deed – depending on their age, anything from helping mom carry the groceries to volunteering at a food bank – they are to give you the wristband. When you do something nice for someone else, pass on the wristband and spread the wave.

John C.P. King

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Childhood allergy rates have hit “epidemic proportions” in Australia, prompting health experts to broaden their efforts to combat the mysterious condition.

Canberra-based allergy expert Dr Ray Mullins said 15,000 Australian children born this year would develop a potentially fatal food allergy before they reached school age.

Food allergies – particularly allergies to peanuts and tree nuts – were a growing problem with no known cause, and they now affected three to six per cent of children under the age of three.

“This translates to 65,000 little kids with food allergy before they reach school age, (including) 25,000 now with peanut or tree nut allergies”, Dr Mullins said today.

“On current birth rates, another 15,000 kids born every year will develop food allergy in the first few years of life.

“It’s a public health problem of epidemic proportions.”

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