{"id":13107,"date":"2025-02-06T15:59:57","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T20:59:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=13107"},"modified":"2025-02-18T08:34:13","modified_gmt":"2025-02-18T13:34:13","slug":"students-spread-important-health-message-during-american-heart-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/students-spread-important-health-message-during-american-heart-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Students spread important health message during American Heart Month"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
New Castle fifth grader Abby Larsen and PE teacher Amber Beans<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fifth grader Abby Larsen is using her heart condition to encourage fellow students at New Castle Elementary to practice healthy habits and support the American Heart Association.<\/p>\n

The 11-year-old had two open-heart surgeries as a baby.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also have a heart condition, so it means a lot to help other kids know more about keeping their hearts healthy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Abby likes volleyball and participates in heart walks to support the cause.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m thankful that I\u2019m able to do most of the things that healthy kids do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>She\u2019s learned how to perform hands-only CPR. The association\u2019s Kids Heart Challenge encourages children to do the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt could help save a life one day,\u201d Abby said.<\/p>\n

Abby recently spoke at an assembly at New Castle, one of many Virginia Beach schools holding fundraisers and awareness campaigns during February, which is American Heart Month. The campaigns raise money for congenital heart defects, nutrition security, CPR training and mental well-being.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Third grader Laney Lyon at Kingston Elementary<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At Kingston Elementary, third grader Laney Lyon and mom Stephanie Lyon helped kick off the Kids Heart Challenge with the American Heart Association. Laney had open heart surgery at just 2 weeks old. Now she helps to raise awareness about how students can help<\/p>\n

As the 2024-2025 Local Youth Heart Ambassador for the American Heart Association Hampton Roads<\/a>, Abby inspires her peers to adopt healthier habits for improved mental and physical well-being.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s exciting to see one of our local youth share their voice and experience to help others live heart healthy,\u201d said Dr. Dena Krishnan, cardiologist and American Heart Association Hampton Roads Executive Board president. \u201cAbby has an incredible story to share and we are excited to see the impact she will make in our local schools and in schools across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Physical education teacher Amber Beans led the assembly at New Castle.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really brave for Abby to step up and share her story,\u201d Beans said. \u201cIt brings awareness to children with special hearts and teaching us how to keep our own hearts healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The association created a variety of duck characters to encourage healthy habits \u2014 \u201cWynn\u201d avoids tobacco and vaping, \u201cRain\u201d drinks lots of water (6-8 cups a day) instead of sugary drinks, and \u201cAce\u201d learned hands-on CPR. Students who learn the procedure earn a red cape they can wear to school.<\/p>\n

During the assembly, Abby passed out prizes to students who answered questions about healthy habits. She then shared her story, asking students: \u201cDid you know your heart is one of the most important parts of your body?\u201d<\/p>\n

The fundraiser culminates with prizes for the top participants. This includes throwing pies at the PE staff and turning Ms. Beans into a \u201csticky duck\u201d by pouring syrup on her head and then throwing feathers.<\/p>\n

For more information about the Kids Heart Challenge, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Abby and her mom<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fifth grader Abby Larsen is using her heart condition to encourage fellow students at New Castle Elementary to practice healthy habits and support the American Heart Association. The 11-year-old had […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":13111,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13107"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13224,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13107\/revisions\/13224"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}