Denver Broncos Clubhouse and J. Churchill Owen Branch of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver Receive Grants to Host the Triple Play Gamesroom Festivals

Festivals Fuse Fun and Learning to Develop Key Skills Including Leadership and Teamwork

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- As part of an ongoing commitment to promote healthy lifestyles, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver (BGCMD), with the support of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation, will host the Junior Triple Play Gamesroom Festival on Saturday, November 3 at the Denver Broncos Unit and the Senior Gamesroom Festival on Saturday, November 10 at the J. Churchill Owen Branch.

Both Gamesroom Festivals will feature kids competing in the following activities: 8-Ball, Bumper Pool, Table Tennis (singles and co-ed), Chess, Checkers and Foosball (singles and co-ed). The Junior Gamesroom Festival will be open to Club kids between 10-13 years old and the Senior Gamesroom Festival will be open to Club kids ages 14-18.

“These events are great extensions of the Triple Play program we run daily at our Club,” said John Arigoni, President & CEO of BGCMD. “Triple Play incorporates three aspects of health: physical fitness, nutrition and fostering healthy relationships with peers through social recreation. The Gamesroom Festival is a single event that brings together each of these components, helping youth see the fun in healthy living.”

Triple Play: A Game Plan for the Mind, Body and Soul, is Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s proven health and wellness program. Supported by founding sponsor Coca-Cola and co-sponsor, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation, the program encourages Club members to eat healthier (mind), become more physically active (body) and increase their ability to engage in healthy relationships (soul).

A recent study of more than 2,000 children ages 9-14 who attend Boys & Girls Clubs showed that Triple Play succeeded in getting them to exercise more, eat healthier foods and feel better about themselves. Triple Play kids increased to 90 percent of the federally recommended amount of daily exercise, which is 60 minutes a day for children, while their peers outside the program decreased to 78 percent.

“Triple Play is all about teaching healthy habits to last a lifetime,” said Mike Ramseier, president and general manager, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Colorado. “We proudly support the Boys & Girls Clubs of America because they share our commitment to helping the next generation live their best lives possible.”

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation and Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver are continuing their work to improve the health of kids across the U.S. by expanding the Triple Play wellness program. This $1,500 grant is part of a three-year, $5 million commitment from Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation’s parent company foundation to Boys & Girls Clubs of America to promote healthy lifestyles.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield is committed to improving the health of area communities. Through its State Health Index – a collection of public health data – and Healthy Generations grant program, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and its foundation works to identify the issues most in need of attention and then direct their financial support and volunteer efforts toward improving health in those areas. Increasingly, these efforts are focusing on addressing the health risks posed by declining rates of physical activity and increasing rates of obesity and chronic disease.

About Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver

The mission of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver is to inspire and enable young people, especially those from disadvantaged circumstances, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens. Since 1961, BGCMD has been helping kids, ages 6-to-18, achieve academic success, live healthy lifestyles, and develop good character and citizenship. The organization operates 16 safe neighborhood sites throughout metro Denver, and a residential summer camp. Learn more at www.GreatFuturesDenver.org.

About Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation

Through charitable grant making, the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation LLC, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, promotes Anthem’s inherent commitment to enhance the health and well-being of individuals and families in communities that Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield serves. The Foundation focuses its funding on strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease states and medical conditions. These include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long term activities that decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company’s annual associate giving campaign and its parent foundation provides a 50 percent match of associates’ campaign pledges. ®ANTHEM is a registered trademark of Anthem Insurance Companies, Inc. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and symbols are registered marks of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Joyzelle Davis, (303) 831-2005
Joyzelle.davis@anthem.com

Source: Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation LLC