The Kohl’s Cares Grow Safe & Healthy Program and 14 YMCAs throughout eastern Wisconsin announce a new programming partnership that aims to reach more than 50,000 children and their families with tools, education and resources to help prevent common childhood injuries. Created by Kohl’s Cares® and Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, the Kohl’s Cares Grow Safe & Healthy Program will provide safety outreach and education at select Y’s in metropolitan Milwaukee, YMCA of the Fox Cities, Green Bay, Manitowoc, West Bend and Kenosha. Topics addressed include: burns, falls, accidental poisonings, sports and seasonal injuries and many more.

“More than 2,300 Wisconsin children are hospitalized each year due to unintentional injury,” said Bridget Clementi, executive director of Community Health and Education at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. “The Kohl’s Cares Grow Safe & Healthy Program was developed as a trusted safety education resource to raise awareness about how to prevent these injuries from occurring.”

The Kohl’s Cares Grow Safe & Healthy Program partnership with the Y directly supports the YMCA’s core mission of youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Serving more than 50,000 kids at centers, camps and before- and after-school programs throughout Eastern Wisconsin, the Y has the network and reach to help deliver this important programming to children and families.

“The Y is so grateful to be a partner in this wonderful collaboration,” said Julie A. Tolan, president and CEO,
YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee. “Children and families look to the Y as a safe, nurturing place to build strong, healthy characters, and the important information being shared through this effort strengthens our investment in kids, their families and the collective health of the communities we serve.”

Interactive digital kiosks and educational toolkits

As part of this program, interactive digital kiosks are being installed at 10 YMCA locations over the next three years.
At the kiosks, kids can play the “Keep Spriggy Safe” game, a fun, age-appropriate, interactive video game that helps players learn to make good decisions about water safety, concussion prevention and other safety indoors, outside and on the go. The first three kiosks are installed at the Rite-Hite Family YMCA in Brown Deer, the Feith Family Ozaukee YMCA in Port Washington and Fox Cities YMCA in Neenah. Educational toolkits designed to accompany the kiosks provide age-specific lessons, activities and enrichment ideas for child care providers and counselors to use while engaging with kids and families who visit the Y.

Safety Awareness Kits

In addition, newly developed safety awareness kits also will be provided to participating YMCA summer camps across eastern Wisconsin. These kits include age-specific program information and activities for children, as well as injury prevention resources for parents.

For more information, visit ymcamke.org and kohlssafeandhealthy.com.