Kane County kids walk to school in support of active lifestyles

Thousands of Kane County elementary and middle school students will miss the bus, on purpose, Wednesday morning. When they do, they'll represent about one-third of all Illinois students participating in the International Walk to School Day.

This year will mark the 20th anniversary of the event, which is organized by the Partnership for a Walkable America. The group formed to promote walkable communities, an idea also pushed by the Kane County Public Health Department and Executive Director Barb Jeffers.

"We do a lot of sitting in our current society, and we know that's not good for you," Jeffers said. "This day is designed to encourage physical activity in kids. The great thing is if a young student walks to school, typically a parent or some other adult will go with. That gets our adults on their feet as well. When we get people walking, the hope is they say, 'Yeah, that's not so bad. In fact, it feels pretty good.' And then maybe walking becomes more of a part of their lives."

Children and adolescents should get at least one hour of physical activity each day, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Research shows active kids are more likely to become active, healthier adults.

Local schools have an extra incentive to take part even beyond the health benefits. Kane County's Fit for Kids website says Parent-Teacher Organizations at each participating school will receive $150.

Walk to School Day became an international event in 2000 when the United Kingdom and Canada joined efforts in the U.S. Over time, the event has fueled discussion about the importance of safe routes to schools in local communities.

Jeffers said safe routes are easy to create in Kane County, though there are challenges. Many rural and unincorporated areas don't have sidewalks along roads that would allow children to walk to school.

Kane County has pushed the idea of walkable communities and the importance of sidewalks through its long-range community health plan. Likewise, county board Chairman Chris Lauzen has modeled the importance of physical activity by joining Aurora students on their walk to school each year of the event.

The official website of the event shows 221 Illinois schools will participate in the event. A total of 71 of them will be from Kane County, though Jeffers said her team is shooting for at least 80 schools. Both would be all-time high totals for Illinois participation. Nearly 5,100 schools will participate across the country.