Cedars-Sinai Co-Sponsors Back-to-School Festival
The thermometer still says summer, but the back-to-school season is getting underway with the 21st annual Mothers in Action Back-to-School Health and Family Festival.
Cedars-Sinai is a co-sponsor of the festival, taking place Saturday, Aug. 3, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Exposition Park, near the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. More than 1,000 children and their families are expected to attend the festival geared to getting kids as ready as possible for the first day of school.
"Cedars-Sinai is happy to partner with Mothers in Action to get kids off to a healthy start for the new school year," said Michele Rigsby Pauley, MSN, RN, program director of Cedars-Sinai COACH for Kids. "Starting the school year in good health is as important as starting with the right supplies."
The COACH team will be on hand to offer kids interactive health-education activities related to nutrition, dental care and summer safety. For example, COACH team members will teach children the correct tooth brushing technique as well as how to protect themselves from too much sun exposure. After visiting the COACH booth, children will receive a free water bottle as an incentive to stay away from sugar-laden beverages.
At other booths, children will be given school supplies, backpacks and even free haircuts. Additionally, families who bring their children's immunization records can receive free vaccinations for their children—including the whooping cough vaccine—which are required by the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Local politicians—including Assembly Member Reginald Jones-Sawyer, Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson and Los Angeles City Council members Curren Price and Marqueece Harris-Dawson—are expected to attend.
Mothers in Action is affiliated with the Los Angeles Sentinel, one of the oldest and largest African American newspapers in the Western United States.
Read more on the Cedars-Sinai Blog: Here Are the Back-To-School Vaccinations Your Kids Need