Donation to Focus on Lowering Obesity Levels in Children & Adolescents

Maryhurst has been awarded an $80,000 grant from the Anthem Foundation to help improve the health and wellness of the children served by the local children’s home and foster care agency.

The purpose of the grant is to reduce obesity levels for the children served by Maryhurst through nutritional consultation and classes, total wellness assessments, fitness classes and ongoing medical monitoring.  The grant, made by the Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, will fund the development of these initiatives and programs to ensure the current and future health and well-being for the multitude of abused and neglected children in the care of the Louisville-based child welfare agency.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Anthem Foundation for this generous contribution which will assist us in our goal of providing a healthier safe haven for children in need,” states Judy A. Lambeth, CEO of Maryhurst. “This grant will further our efforts to establish Maryhurst as an environment of support in which health and wellness practices and programs are an integral part of our children’s daily lives.”

“Anthem is happy to support Maryhurst, a long-respected organization in our community,” said Deb Moessner, president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Kentucky. “And we’re pleased that our support will help broaden their outreach to the at-risk children of our community to include an emphasis on healthy lifestyles.”

Childhood and adolescent obesity is a nationwide – and local – issue that has reached near epidemic proportions; the obesity level for this segment of the population has more than tripled over the past three decades.  According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, obese youth and adolescents are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as high cholesterol and/or high blood pressure, pre-diabetes, and are at greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem.