Winter 2009 - Sts. Simon & Jude

mild winds. Anthony was “on fire” and
shot a 36 par. He was awarded the 5th
place trophy! It was a tiresome week, and a
test of true physical and mental endurance
for Anthony.
It is a remarkable accomplishment for one
so young to even be invited to participate
in a world championship golf tournament,
let alone come home with a 5th place trophy.
We are very proud of Anthony’s
accomplishments, especially given his tender
age of seven! Congratulations to the
entire Dao family, and we wish Anthony
the best of luck in all his future golf
endeavors!
Jump Rope for Heart
students
Russ Smith and Karen Foster
work tirelessly to plan and organize
the annual Jump Rope for
Heart event.
Classmates participate together with their
“body buddies” during Jump Rope for
Heart, as shown by 5th grade students
Haley Higa and Meghan Dale, joining
2nd grader Kristina Pepek.
During the past 25, years the American
Heart Association has been a very important
resource to the Physical Education program
here at Sts. Simon & Jude School. We have
had access to current information on health,
exercise and nutrition, which in addition to
our own curriculum, has helped to make our
Physical Education program so strong. It is
the mission of the American Heart
Association and our mission as well, to teach
the importance of exercise, eating healthy,
and living tobacco free, and to help our students
combat childhood obesity and live a
healthy lifestyle.
Heart and health issues are no longer an
adult problem, so when the American Heart
Association introduced the “Jump Rope for
Heart Event” to Karen Foster many years
ago, she jumped right on it. Anyone can
Katherine Hart, Kenny Sandon and Elsa
Zimmerer synchronize their jumping
techniques.
jump rope so she knew all the children
would enjoy the event, while at the same
time raising awareness for heart disease.
Each year, the event becomes more real to
the students as they have seen family members
and friends face heart problems, as well
with the increase of childhood obesity.
“New studies indicate that one of every
eight children are testing positive for three
or more risk factors which are precursors for
developing heart disease later in life.”
This year is the 30th Anniversary for Jump
Rope for Heart. It has been an honor to be
a part of such a wonderful event, community
builder, and fundraiser. Every year, the
students practice jumping rope for three
weeks, and on the day of the event, they
jump with their “body buddies.” It’s amazing
to see 8th grade students and 1st grade
jumping rope together. Raising
awareness to help fight heart disease, and
witnessing compassion between children are
just two outstanding qualities that happen
during the event. Parents, families, friends,
and parish members of Sts. Simon & Jude
stop by and help turn the rope, cheer on the
children, and are a constant reminder of the
importance of Jump Rope for Heart. We
began with an “honor banner” of 25 names,
and this year we had more than 100 family
members and friends that the children
jumped in honor of. In the beginning, the
school would collect $5000 a year in donations,
and now that amount has doubled to
more than $10,000.
Ms Foster is asked quite often by other
schools why we always have such a successful
event. The only answer is that we have been
blessed with an amazing school and community
who truly cares and understands the
importance of helping others, raising awareness
to fight heart disease and living a
healthy lifestyle. It’s all about the kids.
They are excited every year and look forward
to this amazing annual event. This year has
been a monumental year for marking the
30th Anniversary for Jump Rope for Heart.
With this year’s $10,000 donation, Sts.
Simon & Jude School has raised over
$100,000 for the American Heart
Association. For every child, family, teacher
and friend who took part over the years
either by jumping, donating, or spreading
the importance of Jump Rope for Heart, we
would like to thank all of you. You truly
gave from your heart, and what a difference
you have made to so many lives.