Get active and help Markham win $150K for physical activity initiatives

You can be part of healthy effort

Yorkregion.com
June 5, 2019
Tim Kelly

If you want to get active, you’ll have to do it now.

Until June 16, at four community centres in Markham, you can be part of an effort to make Markham Canada’s most active community. You can also participate by tracking your activity through the ParticipACTION app, available online.

Last Friday, May 31, representatives from York University’s school of kinesiology and health science were in the city to announce the intention of Markham to become Canada’s most active community and encourage the public to help by participating in the ParticipACTION Community Better Challenge.

The challenge is open to all communities and individuals, recognizing the most tracked active minutes based on population size as Canada’s most active community and awarding it with $150,000 to support local physical activity initiatives and five regional awards of $20,000 each.

Through a unique partnership between York’s KIN Kids Program, the City of Markham and the Markham PAN AM Centre, York’s kinesiology students will work at Markham's Aaniin, Angus Glen, Thornhill and Cornell community centres until June 16 to help residents record and improve activity levels during the entire 16-day challenge.

Angelo BelCastro, York University professor and chair of kinesiology and health science, said the school's close relationship to the City of Markham over the years made it a natural fit to help out with the 16-day challenge.

"Our students are meeting with residents and helping them download the ParticipACTION app. They are also helping them set goals and helping them use the app properly to track their progress," BelCastro said.

“The ParticipACTION Community Better Challenge is an exciting opportunity for us to come together as a community and get engaged through physical activity,” Mayor Frank Scarpitti said.

“Make the healthy choice and enjoy Markham’s urban environments and public spaces, which were created with this in mind. Together, we can make the City of Markham Canada’s most active community,” he said.

Janis Cookson, manager of sport development for the City of Markham, said the ParticipACTION Community Better Challenge is ideal for local citizens to get a jump-start on improving their physical activity levels.

“The ParticipACTION Community Better Challenge is coming to be key for all of us in the City of Markham to challenge ourselves to become more active, for life,” Cookson said.

She added that it was important that, given current rates of participation in activity, it’s important for Markhamites to get active.

“The trends reported by the Canadian Community Health Survey are concerning and we want to do our part to help the City of Markham head in the right direction when it comes to overall health.”