BRINNON — When Brinnon School District joined the Fuel Up to Play 60 program, the idea was to entice students to eat better and work out more, the school superintendent-principal said.
The school was named as the No. 2 school in the state out of 1,379 which entered the program, Nancy Thompson said.
The idea is for students to “fuel up” with good nutrition to exercise or “play” for 60 minutes a day.
The top school was Lincoln Elementary in Ellensburg, according to the Washington Dairy Council’s website.
The contest is co-sponsored by the council and the professional National Football League.
Rewarded with game
As a result of their high participation and the good eating and exercise habits of its students, Brinnon was asked to select a student to attend the Sept. 26 Seattle Seahawks game against the San Diego Chargers.
Janelle Johnson, 13, was selected because she had the highest number of points, which are figured out of the eating and exercise logs turned in by the school to the contest, Thompson said.
“We also received some scholarship money — about $350. We used those funds to purchase more things for activities at the school,” Thompson said.
“We also used part of it to purchase a big powerful blender to make smoothies.
“So every Friday, we have smoothies that are healthy with our breakfast program.”
Exciting game
Johnson said the smoothies were a big bonus, but that the Seahawks game, which Seattle won in an upset over the Chargers, was especially exciting.
“I got to hang out with Blitz, the mascot, and I was really excited,” she said.
“The whole idea was really fun. I learned to exercise more, and [the school’s] cook helps us, and we get to pick out the smoothies on Fridays.”
She said she racked up her points with jump roping, soccer and other outdoor activities.
“The smoothies are really good because they are really sweet, so it can make up for things like cake and candy because you still get the sweet, but it is better for you,” Johnson said.
Pregame competition
At the football game, Janelle participated in a pregame competition in which milk jugs are used as part of a relay race.
Janelle was the winner of the competition at the game, Thompson said.
The school will again participate in the competition, Thompson said.
“The students are really excited this year — I think having the NFL involved really helps build the excitement,” she said.
The points are totaled on a proportional basis to the number of students in the school.
“We are a small school, but in this way we were able to compete with the larger schools in the state,” Thompson said.
__________
Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.